Meant To Be
by Danimister
Summary: Lily Evans and James Potter came from two very different worlds. But when they are thrown together at Hogwarts, will they realize they're meant for each other? Rated for minor cursing and some child abuse.
1. Lily

It was a hot, lazy, summer's day on Garland Drive. The kind of day where all you want to do is curl up in front of a great big fan and rest. Drink a cold soda, maybe, or eat some ice cream. The sun beat down on the street ferociously, and no refreshing breeze hit the air. The once beautiful lawns were now a pale brown color, as it was far too hot for the gardeners to work. The identical white houses looked deserted. No children played outside. No adults looked over their hedges, talking and laughing with the neighbors. The yards were empty, deprived of people to tread on the grass. Save for one.

A young girl sat quietly on the porch of Number Seven. She was perched carefully on the edge of a large rocking chair, a large book sitting in her lap. The girl had beautiful, thick red hair that curled softly around her round face. She had pale white skin, with a sprinkling of freckles across her nose. Dark lashes framed her piercing emerald-green eyes. She was slender, but not too skinny, and relatively short. If any neighbors were to walk out of their house, they would have wondered what this young, pretty girl was doing sitting out in the heat, reading.

The truth was, the girl and her twin sister hadn't been getting along lately. They had been fighting more and more, and about stupid, insignificant things. Their last fight had been about who got to watch the one telly in the house. The girl's sister wanted to watch those barely funny, have-no-real-point sitcoms. The little girl, however, wanted to watch a scientific documentary her teacher had mentioned at the end of term. The documentary was supposed to be very interesting, about the communication of animals, but the girl had lost the fight. She liked reading better, anyways.

"Lily Marie Evans!" A sharp, high-pitched voice broke the silence of the street. The girl turned around so fast that she fell out of the chair. Her book fell to the ground, sliding of the porch and into the dirt-filled flowerbed. Her sister, Petunia, stood in the front door. Her blonde hair stuck up due to the humidity, and her piercing blue eyes were now focused sharply on her sister.

If a complete stranger had stumbled upon the scene, they never would have guessed the two were sisters. Lily had her long, silky, soft red hair; Petunia's was short, choppy, frizzy (on hot days), and blonde. You could look into Lily's green eyes, and see wisdom, sincerity, kindness, and politeness. Petunia's eyes were a common shade of blue, nothing special or extraordinary about them. Lily was slender and petite; Petunia was rather chubby and tall. In short: Lily was beautiful, Petunia was not.

"Lily!" Petunia cried again. "Get inside! It's supper time!" She threw one last hate-filled glare at her twin, and stomped off, slamming the screen door behind her.

Lily stood up slowly and shakily, brushing a tear from her eye. They had once been the best of friends, her and Petunia. They had done everything together: Shopping, dancing, singing, playing, reading. They told each other everything! They had confided secrets, discussed their parents worsening fights, and giggled about the boys in their class. It was on their eleventh birthday that Lily had first noticed the change. April 23rd. Lily had accidentally spilled pink lemonade on Petunia's dress. Petunia had jumped up, screaming in shock and embarrassment. Lily honestly didn't think it had been that big of a deal. The dress was pink, the lemonade was pink, so nobody would have noticed if Petunia hadn't started crying.

Lily shook her head. No point in dwelling on old memories. What's done is done, and that's that. _But whatever happened to us? _she thought. She wiped her eyes, smoothed her skirt, brushed the dust of her arms, and went inside. She didn't pick up her book. If she had, if she had only stayed a moment longer, she might have noticed the peculiar man standing at the edge of the drive.

The man was tall. He had a long, auburn beard, a crooked nose, and half-moon shaped spectacles. He walked slowly, and with a strange grace that seemed almost inhuman. He stopped in front of number seven and looked up at the small house.

"You grew up." He whispered, answering the question Lily had asked herself moment before. He stooped; picked up the book Lily had left on the ground, and slid a thick envelope into the pages. He stepped onto the porch and laid the book carefully on a table. Nobody noticed him standing on the porch; nobody noticed him walking away. And nobody noticed him glancing one last time up at the house, and whispering to himself, "You both did."


	2. James

A/N: Oh I love my little story! Thank you so much for the great reviews, I love you all!

Sushiisquirrel: hmm….Dumbledore Lily's father….close…You'll have to wait and see!

MotherCrumpet: Right now I'm kind of going for the Lily/James thing, but you'll have to see how Dumbledore plays into all this…

Oh, and I should PROBABLY tell you guys that I LOVE writing cliffhangers….they won't happen for at LEAST another two chapters, but I will be mean about it…sorry!

"James Merlin Albus William Potter! Get down here this INSTANT!"

A short, messy-haired boy groaned and rolled slowly out of his bed. He reached for a pair of black wire-rimmed glasses on his bedside table, and slipped them on lazily. The boy, James, strode across the room, opened the door, and shouted,

"WHAT?"

Just then, a very pretty woman walked around the corner. She had long, glossy black hair that curled into beautiful ringlets. Her eyes were a very deep shade of blue, and she had a naturally nice face, even though she looked angry.

"What? What? Are you AWARE that today is the day of your father's business party, and your Quidditch things are ALL OVER the ballroom floor?"

James blinked slowly. "We have a ballroom?"

The woman groaned and thrust a load of muddy robes at her son. She busied herself, magically dusting and polishing the house.

James tiredly watched his mum flitting around. She OBVIOUSLY hadn't realized that it was only six in the morning, and his dad's party wasn't until suppertime. This happened every year: Henry Potter had a VERY important business client coming into town, and tried to impress him with his huge house and 'wonderful' family.

James knew his dad didn't really think of him as wonderful. In fact, he thought quite the opposite. Whatever James did was wrong. If he practiced Quidditch, he should have been helping his mum around the house. If he was inside, he should have been exercising. His hair was too messy, his clothes always too rumpled, and his attitude was unspeakably horrendous.

Henry and James had never gotten along. Wait, that was wrong. They had been more of friends than father and son. But that was before.

James didn't like to talk about the accident. It was too painful. That was the day his father disappeared, and became a monster. He hit James if he did anything wrong. If James behaved, Henry would suspect he was 'up to something' and send him to his room without supper.

As James glanced sleepily out his window, he saw a large golden owl rushing towards the mansion. James, now completely awake, shoved the window open and grabbed the letter the owl was bearing. The bird gave him a rather upset look, and fluttered away. James rolled his eyes and unrolled the scroll. He glanced through it quickly, and set it on his desk. It was just his Hogwarts letter.

James knew he would go to Hogwarts. He had known since he was, what? Three, four? The family house elf was running and errand, and James's mom had been cooking supper in the kitchen. When she turned away to consult the cook-book, her apron-strings had fallen into the fire. She hadn't noticed, and James panicked. Without realizing what he was doing, he picked up his mothers wand, pointed it at her skirt, and yelled something incomprehensible. The fire had gone out, and James' mum nearly fainted when she saw her burnt dress, and her little son holding her wand.

His parents had been so proud! Most children didn't show any signs of magic until about seven, and they DEFINETLEY couldn't perform a sixth-year level spell at the age of three.

James sighed and decided to talk a walk around the Potter Mansion.

The Potter house was very large. It was white, and dark green ivy grew up in pretty spirals. The weed didn't look messy, but made the house even nicer to look at. It was a very old-fashioned house, with turrets and a castle-like appearance. James hadn't really ever though of himself as rich. After all, the only people he had ever talked to before had been rich, too.

However, even the rich customers who came to buy Mr. Potters' expensive antiques were impressed by the family's great wealth. The mansion had over a hundred rooms, some James hadn't even explored yet. James had almost a whole side of the house to himself. This was because his father did not like to be bothered by ignorant little ten-year-olds.

Far away, thunder growled menacingly. James glared scornfully at the sky. He couldn't stand to sit inside the large house all day, being a good little boy and keeping quiet. He had to find a place to escape to. Hogwarts would have to be that place.


	3. Storms and Parties

**A/N: **Sorry this is so unbelievably short, but I'm grounded from the computer and I had to bribe my sister to type this for me… So here it is!

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing.

Lily hated storms. She jumped as a huge lightning bolt pierced the sky. Thunder boomed loudly, the house shook, and Lily burrowed further under the covers.

She reached over and flicked on her bedside lamp. She sat up slowly and reached for her book _Where was it?_

As Lily remembered how she had left the book outside after her fight with Petunia, she panicked. That was a LIBRARY book, and a pretty expensive one at that.

Lily scurried out of bed and down the hall to the front door. She tried to open it slowly, but the wind caught it and the door slammed loudly into the wall.

Cold, hard rain pierced Lily's bare arms. She ducked outside and grabbed the book off the porch. Lily dived back inside and slammed the door behind her. She clutched the book to her chest and sighed.

"Aw, is wittle bwaby Lily afraid of a wittle bitty storm?"

Lily opened her eyes and glared at Petunia.

"I was just getting my book, Tuny." She said slowly, as if talking to a very slow three-year-old.

Petunia grabbed the book and held it up mockingly.

"Pride and Prejudice? Hm. Sounds-er-interesting."

She laughed and flipped threw the pages lazily.

Lily jumped up.

"Petunia! That's from the library! Don't wreck it, please, Tun-" she stopped suddenly, as Petunia had just pulled a thick, white envelope from between the pages.

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James sighed. He had just listened to forty-three ministry employees fawn over how much he had grown. It wasn't even true. James was still short and skinny, just like he had always been. Just like Jackson had been. But James didn't want to think about Jack right now. He wasn't ready. Not yet.

James scanned the room for an escape. There! When he was sure his parents weren't looking, James crossed the room and ducked through a door. He ran down the hall and straight into-

"Bellatrix!"

A/N: No, I won't tell anybody who Jackson is. Not yet. You'll find out in about a month! Hahaha!


	4. Reading the Letter

A/N: Blerg. I am SO sorry I haven't updated in like three weeks. I've been kinda busy, with two soccer teams and training to be a camp counselor and stuff. But I'm home sick right now and I have like 20 hours to write, so here it is!

Lily looked down at the letter, then back at her twin. There was no trace of hate in either face, no sign of the fight that had occurred only seconds before. All that was left was a simple, innocent curiosity about the letter before them. For a second, they were sisters again. But all that was about to change.

Lily picked up the letter with trembling fingers. She read the address slowly. It was written in thick green ink:

_Miss Lily Marie Evans_

_Bedroom on the Left_

_Number 7, Garland Drive_

_Liverpool_

"Well if it isn't Bellatrix Black." James sneered as he stood up. "Aren't you in Azkaban yet?"

Bellatrix stared at James coldly. "Funny." She breathed. "Don't you have better things to do than run into people? I'm sure your mummy wouldn't like you getting into trouble."

James smiled. "I can't help it Bella! You're just so unbelievably pretty, even with that little red bump on your nose!"

Bellatrix's smile quickly faded. She rushed to the bathroom across the hall and examined her face in the mirror. James took this time to escape her presence, and begin running once more, until, once again, he ran face-first into a Black. This one, however, wasn't bad.

"Sirius!" James yelled. "I thought you were grounded!"

"My mom didn't trust me in the house alone." Sirius said glumly. "Have I ever told you how much I hate these parties?"

"A few times." James smirked. "Come on, let's go upstairs!"

Lily looked at the strange address on the envelope. She couldn't think. What was this? It wasn't any ordinary letter, the postman wouldn't have slipped it into her book.

_Miss Lily Marie Evans_

_Bedroom on the Left_

_Number 7, Garland Drive_

_Liverpool_

Lily stared. _Bedroom on the Left. _Why would anyone put her **_bedroom_** on a letter? What WAS this?

Lily turned the envelope over carefully. A large wax seal covered the back. Lily had never seen a seal like this before. It was a blood-red color, with four animals surrounding a large 'H'.

With trembling fingers, Lily broke the wax. She slipped the letter out, dropped the envelope, and unfolded the thick parchment. Her eyes slid down the page, and her face turned whiter ever second.

_Dear Miss Evans,_

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

_We are very much aware that this may come as quite a shock. A Ministry representative will arrive at your house at twelve o'clock tomorrow afternoon to escort you and your family to Diagon Alley. He/She will answer any of your questions about the wizarding world._

_Sincerely,_

Minerva McGonagall 

_Deputy Headmistress_

Lily stared at the letter numbly. She was very aware of Petunia grabbing the letter from her hands, but she couldn't move. She heard Petunia hiss at her, "Freak!" She wanted to take the letter back, she wanted to yell at Petunia for nosing into other people's business, but she couldn't. So, instead, she fainted.

A/N: Sorry it's so short, but I had to update it. And at least I got around to introducing Sirius! So please please please review!

-Danimister (AKA: The Jello Queen)


	5. Jessi

A/N: Ok, sorry to confuse you guys, but I'm making a few changes to the story…First, when Dumbledore said "You grew up…you both did," I said he was talking about Lily and James, but I'm actually going to have him mean Petunia and Lily. Second, James is going to have a sister. I should have introduced her earlier, but she makes the plot make more sense. And I think that's it..for now, at least. Thanks to all my reviews! You people rock!

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"Hey, where's Jessi?" Sirius asked, sitting up sharply. "I didn't see her at the party."

James sighed. "Jess is at a friends house. I really don't get why she can get out of these things so easily."

Sirius laughed.

"It's 'cause she's like the only girl in your family, mate. I mean, all your cousins are guys, and you're a guy…"

"Oh, great observation, Siri!"

"Well, all I mean is that she's bound to be spoiled, because all the moms want a little girl to dress up and stuff." Sirius finished.

James contemplated this for a second. "I guess…"

The door slammed open, and a pretty young girl stomped in.

"Jessi!" Sirius and James yelled.

Jessi Potter looked furious. She stamped her foot loudly and shook her black

curls. "ARG!" She bellowed. "I can't believe this! I actually though I wouldn't have to go to this bloody party for ONCE IN MY LIFE, and Alice's mom thinks it would be 'fun' to show up and surprise everyone!"

James chuckled. "So you got dragged into this too, hm?"

Jessi glared at her twin for a second. Then, her face broke into a huge grin. "So…you two got any good pranks planned yet?"

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"Lily! Lily, darling, please wake up!"

Lily turned her head slowly and groaned. "Please, mum, five more minutes!"

"Lily, wake up and tell me what the HELL this letters all about!"

"Rupert, don't yell at her-"

"Letter?" Lily sat up. "What about the letter?"

Rupert Evans glared at his daughter. "Lil, what kind of a joke is this? Did one of your friends write this?"

Lily frowned at her dad. "Daddy, I swear, I don't know who sent it. I don't even know what it MEANS."

Rupert's face softened. He picked up the letter and read it silently. "Well, it says that you're magic, and it invites you to go to a school to learn about magic. But it can't be true, magic isn't-"

_CRACK. _All four Evans screamed as a man appeared out of nowhere. He dusted off his robes and grinned and Lily's parents. "Hello!" He greeted brightly. "My name is Ronald Prewett, I work for the Ministry of Magic in the Auror Training Headquarters, and I've come to escort you to Diagon Alley, so you can get your supplies for Hogwarts."

The Evans family stood flabbergasted.

Finally, Rupert spoke up. "Er-what?"

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"OK, guys, are you ready?" Sirius asked quietly.

James and Jessi glanced at each other, identical smiles on their faces. They nodded and crouched down beside Sirius.

"One...Two…" Sirius whispered.

"THREE!" The twins yelled together. The three children threw a load of Zonko's fireworks over the stair railing. Guests screamed as they were bombarded by flying stars. The three children laughed, and James pulled one more firework out of his pocket. He winked at Sirius and Jessi, and tossed it into the ballroom. The firework exploded loudly, and formed one huge word: HA! It floated around the room for a few minutes, and finally erupted. Water squirted out of it, soaking the guests. James, Jessica, and Sirius ran back upstairs to James' room, and collapsed on the floor.

"That was BRILLIANT!" Sirius screeched. "Bloody amazing, did you see Bella's face-"

The three kids grew quiet as the door opened to reveal Mr. Potter, soaked to the skin and looking positively furious.

A/N: DUN DUN DUN! What will happen to James and Jessi? You won't find out unless you review, so press that pretty little purply-blue button and write ANYTHING! Really, I don't care! ANYTHING!


	6. Henry Potter

A/N: Sigh. Only two reviews. Nobody else could be bothered to press a little button and write one little word…so sad…

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Ronald Prewett slouched. "I'm so sorry. I'm kind of new at this. I guess that was a little much."

Rupert Evans stepped forward. "What is this letter supposed to mean? My Lily can't be magic, magic isn't REAL!"

Ronald stepped back in shock. "Not real? Tell me Miss Evans," He said, turning to Lily, "Have you ever done something you couldn't explain? Something that seemed a little…off?"

Lily stared at him for a moment. Now that she thought about it, there had been strange things. Like that time in kindergarten, when Lily saw a young girl being teased. Hadn't the teaser be struck dumb? And didn't Lily have the oddest feeling that it was her? That she had willed it to happen, and it had?

Petunia muttered something in the background that sounded distinctly like, "Lemonade." And Lily understood.

The lemonade spill HAD been her fault. She knew that she hadn't touched the pitcher, but she had wanted it to happen. She wanted the lemonade to ruin Petunia's dress, the dress that she had showed off so proudly.

Lily glanced back at Mr. Prewett. She said nothing, but he understood.

"Ah." He said. "I though so."

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(A/N: Sirius has already gone home)

"RUINED the party-"

"Daddy-"

"Scandal-"

"Dad-"

"My job-"

"But-"

"How could you?"

Jessi and James hung their heads shamefully. "Sorry." James mumbled.

Henry Potter turned to James angrily. "Sorry!" He yelled. "Do you think SORRY will save me from the sheer EMBARASSMENT I'll face at work tommorow? Do you think SORRY will solve the fact that this will probably be in the Dailey Prophet for WEEKS? Do you think SORRY will fix this whole family's reputation? SORRY doesn't fix anything, James! You ruined a VERY important business deal, and talked Sirius and your sister into helping you! You're a disappointment, James." Henry raised his hand and struck James across the face. James fell backwards onto the floor. His head struck the end table, and he lay limply on the floor.

Jessi screamed. "Daddy, don't!" Tears rolled down her face as she looked at her unconscious brother.

Henry glared at his son one more time before stomping out of the room. Jessi ran to her brother and buried her face in his chest, sobbing.


	7. Diagon Alley, Part I

A/N: Six reviews! Yay! gives cookies I LOVE you guys! And you all have to wait and see who Jackson is and what happened to him. I'll never tell. Well, you know, I won't tell until it's time to tell and when I tell…you know what, never mind. Just read.

Disclaimer: I own Harry Potter in my head…

Warning: VLCA! (Translation: Very Long Chapter Ahead) Well, longer than the first six, at least. Oh, and this is the chappie where I introduce Remus and Peter. Yay!

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_11:00 a.m._

"So Miss Evans," Mr. Prewett grinned, "How do you like Diagon Alley?"

Lily gaped at him. They had visited only two stores, and Lily had already seen enough new things for a lifetime. She opened her mouth to reply, but Mr. Prewett had already grabbed her arm and dragged her into another store, with her parents and Petunia rushing to keep up.

This store was darker than the rest, and bookshelves lined the walls. As Lily inspected the shelves further, she discovered that, instead of books, they held hundreds of thin boxes.

"Ronald! How good to see you again!" An old man walked out from behind the shelves, startling the Evans'. "Why, it seems like just yesterday you were in here, buying your wand."

Mr. Prewett smiled. "It _was_ yesterday, Ollivander. I broke my old wand, remember?"

Ollivander smiled. "Yes, yes, of course. Now, who do we have here?" He asked, peering at Lily.

Lily was somewhat frightened by the man, and couldn't speak. Mr. Prewett saw her hesitation and answered for her.

"This," he said, pushing Lily forward, "Is Lily Evans. Muggle-born." He added, as an afterthought.

"Yes, well, wand arm please." Ollivander measured her arm, and proceeded to pull dozens of boxes off the shelves. "This one should do nicely," he told her, placing a box in front of Lily. He pulled the cover off gently and handed Lily a long stick from inside. Lily picked it up and glanced nervously at Mr. Prewett.

"Wave it around," he muttered out of the corner of his mouth.

Lily took the wand and sliced it through the air. Nothing happened.

"Here, try this one," Ollivander commanded, taking the wand and replacing it with another.

Again, Lily waved the wand through the air. And again, nothing happened.

"Yes, well, third time's the charm, is it not?"

Lily sighed and picked up this wand. Immediately, she knew it was the right one. A wave of warmth rushed through her body, and a strong wind blew throughout the shop. Lights flashed, and for the first time, Lily truly believed that she was magic.

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_11:01 a.m._

"James, we have to tell somebody, please!" Jessi pleaded. That morning, James had once again been a victim of his father's anger. Purple bruises splattered his arms, and he now sported a black eye.

"No, Jess." James said tiredly. "Why would anyone believe us? Dad's very important in the ministry, and we're just a couple of untrustworthy kids."

Jessi nodded sullenly. "Why doesn't mum stop him?"

James looked at his sister sadly and shrugged. They continued walking down the street, finally on their way to Diagon Alley.

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_11:02 a.m._

"Come on, Remus, the car's waiting!"

Remus Lupin smiled to himself. He hadn't believed that he would actually be going to Hogwarts. But sure enough, a letter had arrived last week for him. Special arrangements had been made, and Remus was now going to the best magic school in the world!

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_11:05 a.m._

"Peter, _do_ hurry along!" Peter Pettigrew rushed to keep up with his aunt. He had been sidetracked looking into all the wonderful stores of Diagon Alley. He had feared that he was a squib for so many years, and now he was buying his school supplies.

Peter practically jumped for joy when his aunt bought him a small brown owl.

"It's a present," she said, "For making your family proud." Peter smiled as he stroked the back of the owl.

"I will make you proud, auntie."

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_11:07 a.m._

"Come on, James!" Jessi laughed, running down the alley. The twins skipped and jumped, dodging the shoppers and laughing as people scooted out of their way. Why shouldn't they be happy? They were going to Hogwarts! They were two pranking kids with pocketfuls of money, and their dad was nowhere in sight. They ran, giggling, into Ollivander's wand shop.

A young girl stood at the counter, looking at the two curiously. She had long, red hair, and sparkling emerald eyes. Three people stood behind her, presumably her family, and James recognized Mr. Prewett, a family friend, chatting with Ollivander.

"James, Jessica, so good to see you again! How's your father?" Mr. Prewett scanned the two as he greeted them warmly.

James and Jessi murmured hellos, and James pulled his sleeve down quickly, trying to hide his bruised arms. He felt Mr. Prewetts eyes glancing at his sleeve, but he said nothing. Mr. Prewett tipped his hat and shooed the Evans' out of the store.

"Who were they?" Lily asked him.

"James and Jessica Potter." Rupert answered distractedly. "There's something off about that kid, I just know it…"

"Mr. and Miss Potter," Ollivander said. "I've been expecting you."

A/N: Now please review! I'll give you ice cream!


	8. Diagon Alley, Part II

A/N: Yay! Three reviews within two hours! Ice creams for all!

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, Peter would be dead. Dead and buried. Dead and buried and rotting. Dead and buried and rotting and hated. Dead and buried and rotting and hated and ugly. Oh, wait. He already is ugly. **Cough**

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"Off?" Mrs. Evans asked. "What do you mean? They seemed like charming children to me."

"Oh, they are," Mr. Prewett assured her. "Incredibly intelligent, too. It's just the boy…" he trailed off as a tall, burly man walked towards him.

"Henry Potter!" Mr. Prewett exclaimed. "How fine to see you again! Looking for your kids?"

Henry nodded. "You seen them?" He asked, glancing over the four Evans's.

Mr. Prewett seemed to muse on over his answer for a moment. He jammed his hands in his pockets and looked skyward.

"Actually," he said. "I think they headed that way." He waved indistinctly in the direction Henry had just come from.

"Henry glanced at the Evans's coldly one last time before turning on his heel and walking away.

Mr. Prewett and the Evans's watched his retreating back. When he was out of earshot, the two men turned to each other.

"What was that? Aren't his kids the other way?" Mr. Evans asked.

Mr. Prewett sighed and looked around nervously.

"I don't trust him." Mr. Prewett explained, so quietly that Lily had to strain to hear him. "I'm not entirely sure why. He seems like a nice enough man. I mean, he's high up in the ministry and all, and his wife's an excellent Auror. I just have this…strange feeling, I guess. I figured we should probably warn the twins before he finds them."

"Before who finds us?"

The three adults, Lily, and Petunia turned around to face James and Jessi. For the first time, Lily had a chance to scrutinize them closely.

They were the same height, and looked very much alike. Both had thick black hair, tanned skin, and bright hazel eyes. They had the same nose, same mouth, same chin. Both were scrawny, short, (shorter than Lily, at least) and had mischievous looks in their eyes. They both stood with a hand on their hip and their heads cocked to the side. They glanced at each other curiously, and raised their eyebrows.

Finally, Mr. Prewett spoke.

"Er, your father's looking for you." He said nervously.

Jessi glanced at James worriedly, and his face paled. Without another word, they ran off in the direction of the ice-cream shop.

Mr. Prewett shook his head and ushered the Evans's into another store.

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"Sirius Ryan Black, would you quit lollygagging!" Melinda Black screeched sharply.

Sirius jumped as his mother dug her long nails into his shoulder.

"Mum!" he yelped. "Where'd you come from?"

Melinda glared at him and blinked a few times.

"Unfortunately," she said sarcastically, "I have a meeting to attend in less than twenty minutes, and can no longer accompany you. You will just have to continue on your own."

And with that, she dissapparated, leaving Sirius Ryan Black alone in Diagon Alley. Sirius smiled to himself and rushed towards the ice-cream shop, hoping to meet a few naive people to prank.

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"Peter, I'm going to have to leave you on your own for a few hours, I have some shopping to do." Laura Pettigrew told her son. Peter nodded silently and watched his mother weave through the shoppers. He fingered the lone gold galleon in his pocket and made his way toward the ice cream shop.

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Remus sighed. This always happened when he went shopping with his mother. She would meet an old family friend and chat for hours, completely forgetting about her son.

"Mum," he said tiredly, "Can I please shop on my own now? I am eleven, after all." Lucinda Lupin nodded, still talking, and handed Remus a small moneybag.

Remus took the bag thankfully and walked away to complete his school shopping.

"But first," he said to himself, "I think I'll get some ice cream."

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A/N: So they're finally about to meet! Yay! Sorry I had ice cream on my mind…But there's still one more part to the Diagon Alley scene, so please keep reading! Got to go, my mom's calling me for…oh, how ironic…ice cream.

Reviews make me smile.


	9. Diagon Alley, Part III

**A/N**: Yay! So many wonderful reviews! I'm all smiley now…

Anyways, here's the last part of the Diagon Alley scene. I apologize for the insanity with ice cream… I will tell you a few things that happen in this chapter, though:

-Sirius/James/Jessi/Remus/Peter interactions

-Snape/Lily interactions

-Angry Parents/Kids interactions

-And more ice cream…

And for the people I promised ice cream to, I'm sorry I can't jump out of my computer and give them to you. So I gave them to Sirius instead…

**Disclaimer**: Yes, I own Harry Potter. It was completely my idea, completely my characters, and I'm a wonderful billionaire. Sue me.

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"I thought he said we could shop on our own now! Why would he follow us? That lying, idiotic little b-"

"Jess!" James scolded. "Would you _please_ keep it down? We _need_ to figure out a way to get out of here without him seeing us!"

"Merlin, James, paranoid much?" Jessi teased. "We didn't do anything-well, not this time, at least-so there's no reason he should be mad at us. It doesn't matter if he finds us."

James relaxed in his chair

"I guess you're right," he said. "Thanks, Jess."

"Hey Tweedledum and Tweedledumber, I need your help."

The twins looked up into the eyes of their cousin, Rhett. He was fifteen years old, tall, gangly, and very, er, pimply.

Jessi rolled her eyes. "Rhett, can't you just leave us alone? You don't like us," she waved at James and herself, "and we don't like you."

Rhett pulled out a chair and sat across from them.

"Now that we're all clear on that matter," he looked down at the tabletop, "I really need your help. I have to go take my girlfriends grandmother to the hospital. Can you two please cover for me for a while? It's really slow today, so you shouldn't have to work too much."

Jessica and James exchanged 'the look'. 'The look' was well known throughout the Potter family. The J twins, as they were called, gave that look when they were planning something. Rhett braced himself for the worst.

"Twenty-eight galleons," they said simultaneously.

Rhett sighed and dug through his work apron pockets.

"I only have ten," he said, pushing the gold across the table to James.

Jessi glared at him. "Look, pizza face, we need new brooms. We've saved up almost enough money, and twenty-eight galleons is all we still need. So it's either twenty-eight galleons, or no deal.

Rhett glared at the twins. "Look, _twelve _galleons, and I won't tell your dad you're here."

"Deal!"

James and Jessi pocketed the money and slipped behind the counter. Rhett pulled off his apron and rushed out of the store, muttering.

"Stupid kids…took all of my money…not like their not rich enough already…"

James and Jessica exchanged high fives and smirked.

"So Jessica!" James grinned. "Jessi, Jess, Jessica. We're all alone…"

"In an ice cream shop…" Jessi laughed.

"With nobody else…"

"And forty-seven flavors of ice-creamy goodness…"

They turned to the buckets of ice cream greedily. They were just about to dig in when a bell rang at the front of the store.

"What the bloody hell are you two doing here?" a voice bellowed.

The twins turned, and came face-to-face with…

"Sirius!"

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"Such strange books!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed. "_The Beginners Guide to Transfiguration_? _Quidditch Through The Ages_? _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_?"

Mr. Prewett smiled faintly.

"Yes," he said, "I imagine it's very hard to take in this quickly. Especially with no previous knowledge of the magical world."

They browsed through the shelves, picking up the volumes Lily would need for her classes. They had picked up every book she needed, and were about to pay, when Lily ran face-first into somebody. A boy. With long, greasy, hair.

"Sorry!" Lily exclaimed cheerfully. "Didn't watch where I was going…happens a lot, actually. My name's Lily Evans."

The boy glared at her coldly for a moment. "Mudblood!" he hissed, before walking away. Lily turned to Mr. Prewett, confused. He looked livid.

"What was that?" Mrs. Evans asked. "Mudblood? What is that supposed to mean?"

Mr. Prewett looked back at her.

"It's a very rude name for somebody who's, well, muggle-born. See, some people believe that magic should stay in all-magic families, or 'pure-bloods'. Very few people still have pure lines, however. I'm half, myself. The Potter family is one of the only pure-blood lines left. There are very few others, the Blacks, the Weasleys, and the Malfoys."

"So," Mr. Evans asked timidly. "Are all, er, pure-bloods like that boy?"

"Oh, heavens, no!" Mr. Prewett exclaimed. "The Potter family, for instance, their very nice to Muggles. The Weasleys are, too. In fact, I doubt you'll encounter much prejudice at Hogwarts. Not with Dumbledore as headmaster."

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James and Jessi faced Sirius.

"Us?" They asked. "What are YOU doing here?'

"Buying ice cream, of course!" Sirius answered. "I'd like a quadruple cone, two scoops of chocolate chocolate chip and one scoop of double-mint delight."

James laughed and handed Sirius the cone. "On me." He said. "Well, technically, on Rhett, but whatever."

Sirius licked the cone thoughtfully. "I was wondering," he said. "Would you two like to help me with a wonderfully wonderful prank?"

They were about to answer when the bell rang once more. A short, dumpy boy with thin blonde hair and watery blue eyes waddled in.

"Hey!" Jessi greeted. "Welcome to the ice cream store with the name I can't pronounce, what do you want?"

The boy glanced at the trio warily. "Er, double-scoop of rainbow, please."

James handed him the cone, the boy paid, and the door-bell rang once more. A tall, skinny, brown-haired boy walked in. He looked tired, and held a small bag of money in his right hand.

"You look like a chocolate person." James said. "Double scoop of chocolate fudge-ripple delight with chocolate sprinkles and chocolate whipped cream?"

He stared at James. "Er, yeah. How'd you know?"

James chuckled. "I've seen you in here a few times before. You always order the same thing."

The tired kid still looked wary.

Jessi shook her head. "He has an amazing memory." She explained. "It's the only difference between us, actually. It's kind of funny. James remembers anything and everything, like an elephant or whatever, and I can't remember what I had for breakfast today."

Sirius laughed. "Comes in handy, though. He can remember stuff from years ago, and he knows all these weird random facts about people."

The kid smiled now. He looked over to the corner, where the blonde boy sat, eating his ice cream. He hadn't been paying the slightest bit of attention, and seemed to be off in his own world.

Sirius stuck out his hand. "Sirius Black." He said. "Third-best Prankster in the world."

James and Jessi jumped over the counter at the same time, startling the tired kid.

"James-"

"-and Jessi-"

"-Potter."

Sirius grinned. "We're still trying to figure out which one of them is the best prankster, but they're definitely the first and second."

"Remus Lupin."

The quartet glanced over at the blonde boy. He looked up blankly.

"What's your name?" Jessi asked.

"Oh." He said. "Peter. Peter Pettigrew."

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"Alright then!" Mr. Prewett said, setting shopping bags down on the Evans' living-room floor. "I think we got everything. Wand, robes, books, cauldrons, owl. Here's your train ticket, it's Platform 9 ¾. Be sure to remember that, it's important."

Lily nodded. "9 ¾?" she asked. "But-"

Mr. Prewett had already left. Lily sighed and glanced at her parents, who shrugged. For the first time that day, Petunia spoke. Well, screamed, actually:

"I knew it! I just knew it!" she yelled. "There IS no Platform 9 ¾! It's all a joke; a hoax! None of that stuff is real! There IS no magic school, there's no classes, and there's no such thing as magic!"

She ran up the stairs loudly, and Lily heard a door slam.

"Lily, darling, don't mind her," Mrs. Evans said. "We'll go to King's Cross on September 1st, and see what happens then. That wand wasn't fake, I just know it."

She smiled soothingly at her daughter before rushing upstairs after Petunia. Mr. Evans patted Lily on the shoulder and strolled into the living room to watch the latest football match. Lily dragged her things upstairs to her room, and shut the door softly. She turned and glanced at her large tawny owl. He hooted softly, and nestled his head in his wing.

Lily smiled at her reflection in the mirror.

"Magic IS real," she whispered, and drifted off to sleep.

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"And then," Sirius laughed. "James goes, 'well I can't help it, Bella! You're just so pretty, even with that little red bump on your nose!' and Bella goes off running to check herself in the mirror! It was hysterical!"

Remus, Peter, and Jessi laughed hysterically. James shook his head, smiling.

"But seriously," Sirius said, wiping teats of mirth from his eyes, "Do you two have any pranks to pull?"

James and Jessi exchanged yet another look and grinned at their audience.

"Yes, Sirius," they said, "Yes we do."

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"Ready?" Jessi asked.

Remus, Peter, Sirius, and James nodded, holding their buckets up higher.

The quintet crouched on the roof of the ice cream store, each holding a large bucket.

"Now!" They yelled together.

Peter tipped his bucket first. Thick, gooey honey fell on top of three young kids. They stopped in their tracks and screamed, unable to move in the sticky goop.

Remus tipped his bucket next. This time, thick white glue was dumped onto the three peoples' heads. They screamed some more, and the five kids laughed.

Sirius practically threw the contents of his bucket over the rooftop. Colorful feathers floated down, and stuck to the glue and honey.

Jessi and James tipped their buckets together. Millions upon millions of sparkles covered the three kids, who looked up furiously.

"Sirius!" One yelled. "I'll get you for this, I swear!"

"Relax, Bella!" Sirius laughed, "It was just a joke."

The two others yelled curse words.

"Oh dear," James said. "Snape and Narcissa do have the NASTIEST tongues, don't they? W should sweeten that up a bit…"

And the last bucket was tipped. Rainbow-triple-fudge-swirl-vanilla-cocoa-blueberry-lime-coconut-pecan ice cream poured from the sky, drenching Narcissa, Bellatrix, Snape, and most of the street.

"And now," James said. "For the finishing touch-"

James, Jessi, and Sirius each dropped a cherry. They landed smack in the middle of the three children's' heads, and the other five kids ran off laughing.

"That was bloody brilliant!" Sirius laughed, as the kids scampered downstairs, to the main shop. "How do you two come up with that stuff?"

"It's a gift!" Jessi exclaimed.

"That was the coolest thing I've ever done!" Remus laughed.

"Totally!" said Peter.

"Guys…" James said, sounding very nervous indeed.

And the five kids stopped as they came face-to-face with Melinda Black, Lucinda Lupin, Laura Pettigrew, and Henry Potter.

"Uh-oh."

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**A/N: **Once again, it was fun while it lasted. Thanks for reading my longest chapter yet, you guys rock! Next chapter will be on the Hogwarts Express! Please review; I wrote seven whole pages for you guys!


	10. Hogwarts Express

A/N: Sorry for the wait. I've had a bunch of tests, and three essays for history, and my grandparents came for a few weeks, and then I cracked my kneecap in soccer, and today my mom dragged me around the mall for hours looking at house decorations. So I've been really bored…enjoy…

James woke up on September 1st feeling very tired indeed. He rolled over and threw his alarm clock across the room. It hit the wall, shattered, and magically repaired itself, the alarm still blaring. James groaned and rolled out of bed, stretching. He crossed the room and turned the clock off. He heard the door open and turned to face Jessi. She looked just as tired as James felt. A scream from downstairs caused the both of them to wake up slightly.

"James! Jessi! You two better get down here NOW!" Mrs. Potter shrieked. Jessi raised her eyebrows at James.

"What time is it?" She asked, yawning widely.

James looked down at the clock. "Ten." He stated dully.

"So what's the rush? We've got an hour!" Jessi moaned.

"Jess…" James said, suddenly understanding his mother's hurried tone. "It takes forty-five minutes to get to King's Cross."

Jessi gulped. "I guess we better start packing, then."

The two shared nervous grins, and rushed around the house, collecting their clothes and school supplies. Ten minutes later, their trunks were nearly stuffed to explosion, and they had thrown on some mismatched, wrinkled clothes. They sprinted downstairs and collapsed in a heap in front of their mum.

Wendy Potter glanced at her children hurriedly. She sighed and waved her wand. Their clothes straightened, and their hair now looked brushed.

"Hurry along, then!" She said, ushering her children outside to the car. "We mustn't be late!"

"9 and ¾… 9 and ¾…where the bloody hell is platform 9 and ¾?" Rupert Evans muttered.

"I told you daddy! It doesn't exist! This is all some stupid, idiotic prank to make us all look like idiots! I bet it's a T.V. show!" Petunia ranted.

Lily shook her head. "Tunia, there's no way they could do all those special effects. The bricks actually MOVED!"

Lily pushed her cart around the station for the third time, wondering why Mr. Prewett hadn't told them how to get to the platform. The security guard had laughed in their faces when they asked how to get onto the platform, and, according to the schedule, no trains were scheduled to depart at 11:00. As Lily became more and more weary, the clock hands ticked to 10:58.

Just as Lily was about to give up, she spotted the two kids she had seen in Diagon Alley. What were there names? James and Jessica? She pushed her cart closer, and watched them disappear through the wall between platforms nine and ten. She glanced at her parents, who shrugged. Lily took a deep breath and ran towards the barrier. Instead of running face-first into the wall as she had half expected, she found that she actually went _through _the wall. A long, scarlet train sat before her, and dozens of children hurried onto it. She blinked, shook her head slowly, and stepped onto the train.

"Thank Merlin we made it!" Jessi gasped, fanning her red face.

She and James slumped across the seats of an otherwise empty compartment. They were both breathing hard, having run all the way from the parking lot to the train without stopping.

"Well, don't you two look all bright and cheerful today?" Sirius said sarcastically, entering the compartment.

James gave Sirius a rather dirty look.

"Sirius, shut up." He gasped.

Remus pushed his trunk down the crowded aisles. He searched the train for an empty compartment, but all were filled. When he had just about given up hope, he bumped into someone familiar.

"Hi!" he greeted brightly. "Peter, right?"

The boy nodded. "Yup. And you're…Remus?"

Remus nodded, also. "So," he said. "Found anywhere to sit yet?"

Peter shrugged. "Those other three kids from the ice-cream store are in there, shall we sit with them?"

Remus glanced towards the compartment. "Might as well," he said, opening the door.

Lily walked all the way to the end of the train before finding a compartment. She set her trunk on the rack, and sat down by the window.

Not even a minute later, two girls walked in. One had long, stick-straight black hair with faint red highlights. Her eyes were a dull green with gold and brown flecks, and she wore a faded pair of blue jeans with an orange tank top. She was taller than Lily, about five foot, and she wore a strange gold ring. The ring was shaped like two hands holding a heart, with a crown on top of the heart. Lily thought she looked like the type of person that could talk for hours.

The other girl was taller than Lily, but shorter than the black-haired girl. She had long, shiny blonde hair, and bright blue eyes. She was very skinny, and looked extremely shy. She wore a white tank top, denim jacket, and white and blue striped skirt. On her feet were a very worn pair of ballet flats, and she had a gold charm bracelet on her thin wrist.

"Hi." The first girl said. "I'm Danica, and this is Sabrine."

The second girl smiled shyly. "Is it o.k. if we sit with you?" she asked.

Lily nodded. "Of course. I'm Lily, by the way."

The two girls sat. Just as Lily had thought, Danica was the first to speak.

"I can't believe how crowded this train is!" she said. "This was like, the only compartment that wasn't full."

"Not that we don't mind sitting with you, of course." Sabrine added softly.

"Oh, no! That's not what I meant! I usually don't think before I talk, I'm sorry!" Danica said worriedly.

Lily smiled. "That's alright. I do that sometimes, also. So, how do you two know each other?"

Of course, Danica answered. "Our parents our friends. Lot's of people think it's weird, because Sabrine is so quiet and I'm so loud. But we're best friends. Though," she said smiling. "Sabrine here does get really upset when anybody calls her Sabrina."

Sabrine smiled. "My name's Danish," she said. "I was born in Denmark. We moved to England when I was five."

"So are you two first years?" Lily asked.

Danica nodded. "Yup! I was so excited when I got my letter. I'm a half-blood; my mom's a witch. Sabrine's a full blood, though."

For the rest of the train ride, Lily, Sabrine, and Danica chatted about everything under the sun. Lily hoped they would be friends at Hogwarts, as they seemed to really click. She smiled as Danica told stories about all the places she had traveled to. Right then, Lily lost any thought of not fitting in at Hogwarts. She admired Danica's gold ring, and finally asked where she had gotten it.

Danica held her hand out and looked at the ring sadly for a moment.

"It was my grandmother's." she said quietly. "She gave it to me right before she died."

Lily instantly regretted asking.

"I'm so sorry!" She said. "I didn't mean-"

"It's alright." Danica cut her off. "Lots of people like it. It means something like, 'with love, I give you my heart, and crown it with loyalty'. I can't remember exactly, but my grandmother say's its like an old Irish ring. In Ireland, it's used for a bunch of different things. It can be a wedding ring, friendship ring, whatever."

Lily nodded. "It's beautiful." She said.

"Yeah." Danica muttered. "Anyways, what's your family like?"

James, Jessi, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were having a grand time in their compartment. The snack cart lady had just visited, and James had bought have the food she had. He shared with all, and Remus thought it must be wonderful to be that rich.

The five talked about everything, from their families to the pranks James, Jessi, and Sirius had pulled. Finally, Remus glanced at his watch.

"We should be getting there soon," he said. "We've been riding for hours."

They all pulled their robes on just in time. The train pulled up to the Hogwarts grounds, and the kids climbed off.

"Firs' years over here!" A tall, hairy man yelled. "Firs' years!"

They trotted up to the man. He was tall, more than three times taller than the kids.

"Names' Rubeus Hagrid." He grunted. "Firs' years, in the boats! No more than four to each!"

James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter climbed into one, and Jessi skipped over to Lily, Danica, and Sabrine.

"Hi!" she said brightly. "I saw you in Diagon Alley! I'm Jessica Potter, but you can call me Jessi!"

Lily, Danica, and Sabrine introduced themselves, and they all climbed into the boat.

A/N: Sorry for the kinda abrupt ending, but I wanted to post today, and my mom's telling me to get off the computer. BTW, I'm kinda basing Danica off of myself, and Sabrine is totally my best friend. And yes, I do have that ring.


	11. The Sorting

A/N: So ya had a bad day… lalalalala…ya sing a sad song just to turn it around…. Sorry for the wait, but my grandparents were in town for two weeks.

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Lily grinned. THREE friends. She had made THREE friends, and they hadn't even gotten to school yet!

The boats pulled up gracefully to a stretch of emerald-green grass. The four girls hopped out of their boat and looked around. A huge, magnificent castle stood before them. It was by far the largest building Lily had ever seen, and she had visited the Queen's castle on a field trip last year. Why, the door itself must have been twenty feet tall!

The tall man (Hagrid? Was that his name?) straightened up and knocked twice on the large wooden door. The first years waited with baited breath. The door creaked open, and a very strict-looking woman beckoned them inside. The first-years looked around hesitantly, none wanting to be the first to follow.

Lily and Sabrine shared nervous glances. They looked at the door again.

"Well, go on!" Hagrid said, confused.

James Potter and Sirius Black stepped forward, grinning. They turned to the crowd and bowed dramatically before disappearing through the door. Jessi shook her head and ran after them, and the rest of the group slowly headed towards the entrance.

The inside of the castle was, if it was even possible, more astonishing than the outside. Suits of armor, paintings, and candles decorated the walls, and the paintings seemed to be moving. Lily gasped when a young girl in a painting curtsied.

Danica smiled. "All wizard paintings move, Lily."

Lily nodded. "Anything else I should know about?"

Danica opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by the arrival of-a ghost?

A silvery man floated through the wall and glared at the children.

"Ickle firsties!" He cackled.

The woman who had opened the door emerged from the hallway and threw a stern look at the ghost.

"Peeves, I'm warning you!" She said.

The ghost laughed madly and sailed away, upside down.

Danica looked at Lily, who was gazing dumbfounded at the wall he had disappeared through.

"Ghosts." She said simply.

The woman clapped her hands, and the kids fell silent.

"Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am Professor McGonagall, the deputy headmistress. In just a few moments, you will be sorted into your House. Your House will be like your family while you are at this school. Now please, follow me." She strolled through a set of grand double doors, and once again, Sirius and James were the first to follow.

"Figures." Jessi muttered in Lily's ear. "Sirius and my brother being first."

Danica turned and looked at her. "**He's** your brother?" she asked.

Jessi nodded. "Yeah, why?"

Danica smiled. "He's kinda cute."

Jessi gagged.

The first years stopped at the front of the room. All eyes were upon a large, wrinkled hat sitting on a stool at the front. The hat opened along a seam in the bottom and began to sing:

(A/N: This may be VERY bad…)

_About a hundred years ago,_

_Before you walked this land,_

_Lived four people of great skill,_

_Who vowed together stand_

_All four together made the vow_

_To help the children few_

_Who showed the signs of magic great_

_And teach them what they knew _

_But Alas! the founders four_

_Just could not decide_

_The children who the four should teach_

_And their magic confide_

_First, Ravenclaw, the beautiful,_

_Of intelligence immense,_

_Wanted only to accept _

_The few with brains intense_

_Next, Hufflepuff, the fair and loyal,_

_With intentions good and true_

_Vowed to welcome anyone_

_Who magic did pursue_

_Third, Gryffindor, the battle knight,_

_Whose bravery was cheered,_

_Wanted only children who_

_With courage would appear_

_Last, Slytherin, the skiving beast,_

_Whose heritage was pure,_

_Wanted only children whose_

_Bloodlines were secure_

_Now Slytherin could not compromise,_

_He wanted only children pure,_

_So the other founders three_

_Became very unsure_

_They told him that he could not stay_

_If he remained so blind_

_And Slytherin, the odd one out,_

_Found himself in a bind_

_He left the school, but not before,_

_Vowing to return,_

_And at last, invoking his revenge_

_Upon their spurn_

_So the school prospered and grew,_

_With Slytherin no more,_

_And the founders three,_

_Thought no more of founder four_

_But, I beg of you, beware!_

_Of Slytherin's arrival_

_And the heir of Gryffindor,_

_Must fear for his survival_

_So stand together!_

_And fear not, for love can conquer evil_

_And help each other through these times_

_Else bend to fear primeval_

The hat grew silent, and everybody exchanged looks. The teachers even seemed confused, until Professor McGonagall cleared her throat.

"Er-first years, we will now begin the Sorting. When I call your name, you are to come up to this stool and place the hat on your head. The hat will then sort you into your respective house. Now-Adams, Laura!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Black, Narcissa!" A tall, pale, dark-haired beauty strutted to the front. Lily heard someone snort behind her, and turned to see Sirius Black. He was glaring at the girl angrily.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Black, Sirius!"

Sirius walked slowly to the front and slipped the hat on. He sat for five whole minutes before-

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily heard cries of outrage from the Slytherin table, and saw James and Jessi give Sirius thumbs-up.

A few more people were sorted before Lily's name was called.

"_Well, dear, you do have a certain aura of immense intelligence, definitely Ravenclaw, but you also have the mark of loyalty, Hufflepuff, maybe? No, neither of those, you're not a Slytherin, so-_

_"_GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily grinned, hopped off the stool, and ran to the red-and-gold clad table, sitting across from Sirius.

She watched the rest of the Sorting in a blur. She clapped and cheered when Danica, Jessi, James, and two boys named Remus and Peter got sorted into Gryffindor.

Danica grinned. "Sabrine better get into Gryffindor, too!"

Finally, Professor McGonagall called out: "Vibbard, Sabrine!"

The blonde stepped up to the stool and put the hat on nervously. Danica, Lily, and Jessi waited silently.

"RAVENCLAW!" The hat screeched.

"What!" Danica yelled.

Sabrine bit her lip and fought back tears as she walked over to the Ravenclaw table. Lily gave her an apologetic smile, and she tried to grin back.

Dumbledore stood. "Now, with the sorting over, I have a few words: Zing, Glopsky, Merckle, Plop. Enjoy the feast!"

Lily frowned. "What?" she asked.

Danica shrugged, her mouth already full of food. Lily glanced around and noticed the plates had filled themselves. She grinned. "I could get used to this!"

After an hour of ravenous eating, Dumbledore stood once more.

"Prefects! Please show the first years to the dormitories!"

Immediately, a tall, brunette Gryffindor stood. "First year Gryffindors, follow me!"

Lily, Danica, Jessi, Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter stood and followed the girl.

Sabrine walked up to Lily and Danica. "I can't believe this!" She muttered.

Danica hugged her. "It's Ok, Sab, we'll find a way to hang out with you."

Sabrine smiled faintly and followed the Ravenclaw prefect.

As the Gryffindors followed the brown-haired girl, Lily found herself wondering how she would EVER remember where the dorms were. They must have traveled up four flights of stairs already, and some of the staircases MOVED!

Finally, the girl stopped in front of a painting of a woman in a frilly pink dress.

"Bumbling Boggart." The prefect stated.

The woman in the painting nodded, and swung to the side, revealing a narrow passageway. The group walked through into a grand red-and-gold room.

"Girls, up the stairs and to the right, boys, up and to the left." The prefect turned to face the first years. "Your luggage has already been brought up for you. If you have any problems with your dorms please let me know. And," She smiled. "I strongly advise the boys to NOT go into the girls dormitories."

A group of fourth years that had been lounging around the common room giggled at this.

The first years scrambled to their rooms. Lily, Danica, and Jessi each jumped onto a bed.

"I get the window!" Lily yelled.

"I get the other window!" Jessi laughed.

"Yeah? Well, I get the one next to the bathroom!" Danica said in a fake-prissy voice.

Jessi stopped laughing. "Wait." She said. "There's FOUR beds."

Just then, a sullen-looking blonde walked in. "Great." She said. "Just great."

She strutted to the untaken bed, flopped down, and pulled the curtains shut.

Danica raised her eyebrows, and Jessi and Lily shrugged. They went to bed that night, ready for anything Hogwarts would throw at them.

A/N: Good? Bad? Amazingly awesome? Whatever it is, REVIEW!


	12. Switching Houses

A/N: Sorry it's been so long. I was busy with a science project, and I had a surprise party for my best friend yesterday. Anyways-Chapter Twelve

)))))))))))))))))))))))))((((((()))))((((((000)))))))(((((((((((()))))))))))(((((((((()))))

When Lily woke up the next morning, the mysterious blonde had already left. She yawned, stretched, and padded quietly to the bathroom, not wanting to wake Jessi or Danica. After all, they had been friends for less than a day, and she didn't want them mad at her.

Lily combed through her tangled red hair and brushed her teeth. For a few moments she examined the faint red bump on her nose, hoping it would go away before anyone noticed.

She sighed and strode back to the bedroom, finding Jessi and Danica just waking up.

"Where's the princess?" Danica yawned; obviously referring to the rude blonde they had met the night before. Lily shrugged.

Jessi stood up. "First day of classes! First day of classes!" She sang loudly.

Danica looked at Jessi in confusion.

"You're HAPPY about that?" She asked.

Jessi turned around, hands folded across her chest.

"First-year classes are supposed to be amazingly fun!" she said, faking shock that Danica didn't know that.

"Really?" Danica asked. "Who told you that?

"Jackson!" Jessi said, and stopped.

"Who's Jackson?" Lily and Danica asked simultaneously.

Jessi bit her lip. "Nobody. He's-nobody."

Jessi slipped her Hogwarts robe on over her p.j.'s and strolled out of the room. Lily and Danica shared confused glances and followed.

…

The first-year Gryffindor boys were having a bit more trouble in their dorm.

"Sirius!" James yelled. "Sirius Matthew Black, wake UP!"

Sirius continued snoring.

James turned to Remus and Peter. "Suggestions?"

Remus grinned and yanked Sirius's bed covers-hard. Sirius spiraled off the bed and landed hard on the ground.

"Ugh!" he moaned. "Five more minutes, Reg."

James heaved a sigh. He stepped back a few feet, tilted his head back, and yelled:

"RABBITS! OH SWEET MERLIN, THEY'RE EVERYWHERE!"

Sirius flailed about wildly. "Get 'em off me! Ah! JAMES! HELP!" He finally untangled himself from the bed sheets and jumped onto his bed.

"Where are they?" he whispered.

Remus and Peter fought back their laughs and dove out the door. James grinned and gave Sirius a little wave before following.

The three were halfway down the stairs when they heard a yell.

"HEY! That WASN'T funny, James!"

…

When Lily, Danica, and Jessi finally made it to the Great Hall (after many wrong turns), they saw Sabrine sitting by herself at the Ravenclaw table. Danica waved her over, and she walked to them sadly.

"I can't BELIEVE I'm separated from you guys!" she moaned.

Jessi put an arm around Sabrine's shoulders. "That's o.k. Sabrine, we'll find a way to get you into Gryffindor!"

Sabrine smiled. "Thanks, Jessi, but I've already asked the headmaster, and he said no."

"So?" Lily asked. "It doesn't mean you can't sit with us!" She pulled Sabrine over to the Gryffindor table and shoved her down on the seat next to her. Danica and Jessi sat across from them.

"Are you SURE this is O.K?" Sabrine asked worriedly. "I don't want to get in trouble my first day."

"It's fine." Jessi assured Sabrine, spooning eggs onto her plate. "I can guarantee you my brother and his friends are gonna get in trouble soon."

"Speak of the devils." Lily murmured, as the four boys entered the hall. James spotted his sister and strutted over to their side of the table.

"Morning, Jess!" He greeted brightly.

"Morning guys!" Jessi sang, just as enthusiastic.

"Shut up," Sirius groaned.

The girls stared at Sirius worriedly.

"Um." Jessi said.

"He's had a bad morning," James explained, patting Sirius on the back.

…

The first-year Gryffindors had Transfiguration with the Ravenclaws first, so Sabrine got to sit with Jessi, Danica, and Lily again.

"Transfiguration," Professor McGonagall lectured, "Is one of the most difficult of all magic areas. It requires the mind to completely concentrate on the task at hand. We'll start with something easy. Please turn to page ten of your textbooks and try to turn these matches into needles."

After half an hour of struggling, sweating, and crying, only James and Sirius had managed to transfigure their matches. Remus had managed to at least make his match a dull silvery color, Jessi's was pointed, and Lily's kept changing. It became a needle for a moment, and changed back into a match. Sabrine was patiently prodding her match with her wand, Danica had taken to yelling at her match, and Peter's was simply rolling on the tabletop.

"Oh for the love of Merlin!" Danica cried. "Change, damnit! Change!"

"I can't BELIEVE James managed to change his already!" Jessi whispered angrily. "He's going to be so egotistical about it, too! SLIGAFIE!"

Jessi pointed her wand sharply at her match, and it changed.

"Yes!" She cried. "I AM VICTORIOUS!"

Lily rolled her eyes and faced her match once more.

"Come on, Lily, you can do it…Sligafie!"

Her match did, indeed, change into a needle, but it still looked a little wooden.

"Ugh! Close enough!"

At the end of class that day, only Sabrine, Remus, Lily, Jessi, Sirius, James, and a brunette Ravenclaw had managed to change their matches. Jessi, James, and Sirius were the only ones who did it perfectly, however.

Danica gathered up her things angrily. "Stupid Transfiguration," she muttered.

The next class was Charms. The professor was a tall, willowy blonde woman who looked as if the slightest wind could blow her over. She immediately set them to work on a relatively simple colour-changing charm. Much to Lily's surprise, she was successful on her second try. Jessi looked at her in shock.

"How the bloody hell did you do THAT?" she asked.

Lily shrugged and looked around the room. So far, she was the only one who had managed to turn her wine glass orange. Sirius' had turned a sickly shade of green, Peter's had fallen over and shattered, and Danica's had done nothing. James had come pretty close though; his had turned a light shade of gold. Professor Carpenter frowned upon passing him, however. When she walked by Lily, she gave her a small smile and nodded appreciatively.

None of the classes that day were completely boring, except for history of magic. Lily, Danica, and Jessi later heard James and Sirius talking about how old the professor was. He did, indeed, look pale and sickly, as if he could fall over dead at any second.

At dinner that night, Sabrine once again sat with the Gryffindors.

"Classes were fun today," she said, "I just wish Gryffindor and Ravenclaw had more classes together."

Jessi was gazing thoughtfully around the room. "I got an idea!" She said suddenly.

She stood up sharply and skipped to the Ravenclaw table. Her friends watched as she tapped a pretty blonde girl on the shoulder. When she turned around, they could see it was the girl that had come into their dorm last night.

"Excuse me," Jessi said sweetly. "But aren't you in Gryffindor?"

"Yes," the girl said slowly. "But all my friends are in Ravenclaw, so I'd like to eat with them, if you don't mind."

"No, of course not!" Jessi exclaimed. "I'm Jessica, by the way. Jessica Potter."

"Charisma Chase." The girl said.

"Anyway, I was wondering something…if all your friends are in Ravenclaw, how bout you stay in the Ravenclaw girl's dorm, and my friend Sabrine can take your spot in Gryffindor?"

Charisma turned to look at Sabrine for a moment. She glanced back at her friends, who nodded supportively.

"Deal."

A/N: So….like it? Reviews are much appreciated! I have FOUR MORE DAYS of Jr. High left, so I should be able to update a LOT during the summer…not like I have anything better to do…sigh.


	13. The Halloween Prank

A/N: Sorry about the wait. My muse has left me…so this probably won't be my best…

…

The first two months at Hogwarts passed by quickly. James and Sirius received detentions daily, and Sabrine became far happier now that she was able to spend more time with her friends. Halloween seemed to burst upon them very suddenly.

Lily soon realized how very important Halloween was to the magical community. Hagrid decorated the castle with giant pumpkins and other rather eerie decorations. Students began to wonder what delicious foods would be served at the Halloween feast, and James and Sirius were often seen conversing in low voices by the fire. Many students were sure they were planning an amazing Halloween prank, and the Gryffindor girls were sure they could find out what it was.

"So," Jessi said to her brother at breakfast the day before Halloween, "What'cha up to?"

James continued eating his food calmly. "What do you mean?"

Jessi sighed. "Look, James, you're my brother and I know when you're planning something, and I WANT TO BE IN ON IT!"

James put his spoon down and glanced at his twin.

"Jessi," he started seriously, "I have NO idea what you're talking about."

James and Sirius stood up and strolled out of the Great Hall. Jessi groaned.

"I still say you're brother's hot." Danica said dreamily.

Lily, Sabrine, and Jessi glared at Danica for a second and stalked away to class.

…

"AHG!" Jessi yelled. "Why won't he tell me!" She kicked a wall angrily.

"OW! Oh, BLOODY HELL! OW!"

Sabrine shook her head. "I swear, Jessi, you're an idiot sometimes."

"Hey!" Lily said suddenly. "Let's go see Hagrid!"

The girls had first befriended Hagrid when they had seen him struggling to help a wounded unicorn near the lake. The unicorn had lashed out every time Hagrid drew near, despite its' broken leg. The girls had rushed down to help the creature, and Hagrid had thanked them graciously.

"I would've helped 'er meself," he had said, "but those blasted unicorns won't let no man near 'em!"

He had then offered them tea and cakes, which, although they were hard as rocks, was a kind enough gesture to make the girls visit him every weekend.

(A/N: back to the present…)

Jessi stopped hopping up and down and seemed to think about this.

"O.K.," she said.

…

"Well o'course they're plannin' somethin'!" Hagrid said, pouring hot, steaming tea into four cups, "It's yer brother we're talkin' abou!"

Jessi smiled. "So you've heard of James, then?"

"Heard o' him?" Hagrid chuckled. "Do y'know how many times I've had ter drag him and that Black kid outta the forest? I do hafta admit though, those kids are some o' the smartest I've seen in a long while."

…

Halloween evening brought forth a great deal of whispered rumours of the grand prank expected. The Slytherins traveled in huddled packs all day, certain the prank was to be pulled on them. By the feast that evening, however, no signs of mischief had been detected.

"They're planning something, they've got to be!" Jessi muttered, tapping her fork against her plate.

"Face it, Jessi," Sabrine whispered, staring at James and Sirius, along with the rest of the Hogwarts students, "They're not planning ANYTHING."

In fact, James and Sirius seemed completely oblivious to all the stares they were receiving. They ate calmly, talked to Remus and Peter, and acted as if they were totally innocent.

After a half hour, they simultaneously stood up, said goodnight to their two friends, and strolled out of the Great Hall. A flurry of whispers rose up; everybody wondered why the two school pranksters had passed up Halloween night. They all ate in silent confusion, wondering if maybe the two weren't as good pranksters as they had seemed.

In the common room that night, everyone sat and watched James and Sirius playing Exploding Snap in front of the fire. Jessi started towards them, but was interrupted by McGonagall entering the room in a huff.

"Mr. Potter! Mr. Black! Are you two responsible for this?" she screeched.

They looked up innocently. "Responsible for what?"

"Oh for heaven's sake…Miss Black, come here."

Bellatrix entered the room sullenly, and everyone burst into laughter. Her long, silky hair was now tinted red and gold, her skin was gold, her eyes were red, and large, sparkling letters floated above her head:

Gryffindor Pride 

Sirius and James bowed to the applause, and McGonagall pulled them out by the ears. Bellatrix scurried out of the room. The rest of the Gryffindors piled through the portrait hole, only to see the rest of the Slytherins, also decorated with the Gryffindor colors.

Jessi grinned. "I told you they were planning something."

…

A/N: Reviews, please, even if you did hate it…I'm probably going to go through first year pretty fast, because I'm better at writing with older characters…


	14. Secrets Revealed

A/N: Zero reviews…sigh…so sad…I'm so unloved…but I'm totally nice enough to give you a fourteenth chapter…despite the complete lack of reviews…

This chapter is all James, Remus, Sirius, & Peter------

…

For the next few days, the whole student body was abuzz with the excitement of the great Halloween prank. Everyone asked James and Sirius how they did it, but they just smirked knowingly and shrugged. Even Remus and Peter wouldn't tell how the prank had been accomplished, though Jessi was sure they had made some kind of deal with the House-Elves who cooked the supper. The incident made James and Sirius the most popular guys in school. They had done what everybody secretly wanted: they had humiliated everyone in Slytherin with one blow. Unfortunately for James and Sirius, their prank earned them a week's worth of detention and 100 house points taken from Gryffindor.

"I **still** can't believe you guys actually pulled it off!" Peter exclaimed excitedly a week later. James shrugged.

"What can I say?" he said smugly. "We're brilliant."

Sirius nodded violently, and Remus rolled his eyes.

"So…" James said lazily, "Anyone up for a little trip to the kitchens?"

Peter jumped up. "Yeah!"

"I'm in!" Sirius chimed.

All three turned to Remus, who looked out the window to the darkening sky nervously.

"Actually, I'm, er, not feeling to good. I think I'll go to the Hospital Wing."

"Want us to walk you?" James asked worriedly.

"NO!" Remus yelled. "I-I mean, no, I'll be fine."

…

"He didn't **seem** sick…" Sirius pondered as he, James and Peter walked through the halls. "Just, you know, tired."

James changed direction suddenly.

"James! Hey, James, mate, where are you going?" Sirius gasped as he rushed to keep up.

"We're paying a little visit to Remus."

…

"How are you feeling, Mr. Lupin?" Madam Pomfrey asked as her and Remus walked to the Whomping Willow.

"Fine!" Remus said.

"And your friends? They suspect nothing?"

"Of course not."

…

"Don't you think it's strange that Remus is ALWAYS sick on a full moon?" James asked, still walking to the hospital wing very fast.

"What are you saying, James?" Sirius asked.

"Well, do you think that maybe-" He stopped as they walked into an empty hospital wing.

"He's not here," Peter said.

"And neither is Madam Pomfrey…" Sirius muttered.

James strode to the window and peered out.

"There!" he exclaimed. "Heading towards the Whomping Willow!"

Sirius and Peter followed his gaze, and sure enough, saw Remus being led towards the deadly tree by Madam Pomfrey.

"So, what do we do?" Sirius asked, turning to look at his best friend.

"We'll talk to him tomorrow morning." James said.

…

Remus awoke the next morning in terrible pain. Every inch of his body was aching dreadfully, and he had great, bloody scars covering his chest, arms, and legs. He moaned as he tried to get up and find his clothes. He put them on tiredly, and slumped downstairs to meet Madam Pomfrey.

"Are you feeling alright?" She asked him, scanning his body for any broken bones, sprains, fractures, etc.

Remus nodded. "Just a bunch of scars," he said.

"Well, all the same, I'd like to put something on them. You don't want them to get infected, do you?"

Remus shook his head slowly.

"Let's be off, then!" The nurse exclaimed cheerily.

The two trudged up to the castle. It must have been very early in the morning, as the sky was still dark, now with a faint pink tinge across the horizon.

When they reached the Hospital Wing, Madam Pomfrey gestured to a bed and headed into her office. Remus collapsed onto the bed and closed his eyes.

Suddenly, he heard a muffled cough and a swish of fabric. He opened his eyes and sat up.

James, Sirius, and Peter stood in the corner of the room. James clutched an invisibility cloak in his left hand.

"Why didn't you tell us, mate?" Sirius asked.

"I thought-" Remus started. His voice faltered.

"You thought what? You thought we would be scared of you? You thought we would shun you? You thought we would tell everybody in the school? What the bloody hell were you thinking? You're a werewolf, you're only like that three days a month, you're normal ol' Remus the rest of the time! Why didn't you just TELL us?" James shouted.

Remus turned his gaze away from his friends.

"I don't know." He said quietly. "It's just that, everyone who ever found out got scared of me or something.

Sirius sighed. "Come on, mate! We're your FRIENDS! We wouldn't do that to you! FRIENDS! F-R-E-I-N-D-S!"

Remus looked up. "You spelled it wrong."

All four friends grinned.

A/N: I know, stupid chapter ending. But I really couldn't think of anything else, and they had to figure it out someway…Now, REVIEW!


	15. Parting in Such Bitter Sorrow

A/N: I probably won't have a chance to update again for a few weeks, so…yeah….that's kinda it…

…

"James is an idiot."

"Come on, Jess, he's not that bad!"

"Shut up, Danica, you're just saying that cause you like him!"

"So?"

Lily and Sabrine sighed. Danica and Jessi fought for a bit, and Lily finally decided to intervene.

"Why are you mad at James, Jess?"

Jessi stopped arguing with Danica and turned to Lily.

"He-he just IS! We used to plan pranks TOGETHER, but he doesn't even TELL me about them anymore! Him, Remus, Sirius, and Peter are just so-ARG!" She flopped down on a nearby chair and buried her face in a gold satin pillow.

Sabrine patted her friend on the back absent-mindedly. She glanced out the window. Everything was covered in a thick white sheet of snow. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were engaged in a violent snowball fight out on the Quidditch pitch, and older students returning from their last shopping trip to Hogsmeade before Christmas rushed past them nervously.

"I wish we could go to Hogsmeade," Danica said wistfully, "I mean, I had to order ALL my Christmas presents by owl order, and that costs more than in the store."

"Ooh, what did ya get me?" Jessi exclaimed, bouncing up from her chair.

Lily laughed. "Jess, you do know that Christmas presents are supposed to be a surprise, right?"

Jessi blinked. "O.K… so what did YOU get me?"

"Trying to get your gifts two weeks early, Jess?"

James and his friends stood in the doorway. Sabrine jumped and looked back to the window.

"How…I just saw you guys outside five minutes ago! How'd you get up here so fast?" She asked.

Sirius smirked. "We have our ways."

"So, James! My favorite twin in the world, Jamesie James James…"

"Forget it, Jess. I'm not telling you anything."

Jessi pouted and buried her face in the pillow once more.

…

"Jessi, can I ask you a question?" Danica asked that night.

"Hm?"

"Does-does your brother ever talk about me?"

Lily and Sabrine sighed and headed into the bathroom to brush their teeth.

"You really like him, don't you Dani?"

Danica nodded and picked a loose thread from her skirt.

"Well, he usually doesn't talk to me about stuff like that, but I'll tell you what: we're both heading home for Christmas break tomorrow. I'll ask him over break, and owl you if I find out anything."

"Thanks, Jessi!" Danica hugged her friend. "You're the best!"

…

The next morning, James, Jessi, Remus, Peter, Danica, Sabrine, and Lily dragged their trunks down to the carriages. They were all going home for the two-week Christmas break.

"I can't BELIEVE this!" Sirius yelled. "You're all leaving me all alone, in a cold, dark castle! I'll be stuck with all the FILTHY Slytherins, with NOBODY to talk to, and I'll have NO friends, and I'll slowly STARVE to death!"

James grinned. "Come on, Sirius, don't be such a drama queen!"

Danica laughed loudly.

"Anyways," Jessi said, trying to save Danica from any further embarrassment, "If you had told us you were staying here, we would have invited you to our house!"

Sirius blinked. "Shoot."

The seven friends boarded the carriages. Remus, James, Peter, and Jessi took one, and Lily, Sabrine and Danica the other.

"Have a Happy Christmas, you backstabbing, evil little deserters, and-"

"BYE, SIRIUS!"

"So, James, what do you think of my DEAR friend Danica?"

…

A/N: Now review, my loyal little minions-er, I mean, um, FRIENDS!


	16. Letters

A/N: I'm back!

Dear Darling Danica- 

_James didn't say anything about you. But don't take it personally, I don't think he likes girls in that way yet._

_Your awesome friend,_

_Jessi_

…

_Jessi-_

_Nothing?_

_Danica_

…

_Danica-_

_Nothing._

_Jessi_

…

_Lily-_

_How's your vacation so far? Mine's pretty ordinary; James always seems like he's up to something, Dad's always working, and Mum's on one of her cleaning frenzies. I miss you!_

_-Jessi_

…

_Jess-_

_Yours sounds better than mine! My parents are o.k., they're really excited that I'm back. My sister is a nightmare, though, she won't stay in the same room as me for more than a minute, and she's said three words to me the whole time: Hello, Ew, and Freak._

_-Lily_

…

_Lily-_

_I'm sorry!_

_-Jess_

…

_Sabrine-_

_Jessi said that James didn't say anything about me._

_-Danica_

…

_Danica-_

_That's all right, Dani! Boys don't mature as fast as girls; he probably still thinks we have cooties!_

_-Sabrine_

…

James- 

_How are your holidays? Mine suck. Thanks a lot._

_Sirius_

…

Sirius- 

_Sorry, mate!_

_James_

…

James- 

_Do you think Sirius is mad at us?_

_-Peter_

…

Peter- 

_Yup._

_-James_

…

Remus- 

_Sirius is mad at us._

_-Peter_

…

Peter- 

_Thanks._

_-Remus_

…

"So, Lily, how's your school?"

"It's great, mum! They teach us so much; Charms, Transfiguration, Potions. They even have a flying class!"

"Have you made any friends?" Mrs. Evans asked, spooning small servings of vegetable soup into four bowls.

"Loads!" Lily exclaimed. "There's Danica, she's the kind of wild one, she wants to dye her hair blue, then there's Sabrine, she's really quiet, but her and Dani are best friends. And Jessi, she's really cool, too."

"So you like it there?" Mr. Evans questioned, slicing up the roast beef for Christmas Eve supper.

"Oh, yes!"

"Well that's good."

Lily nodded and began setting the table.

"Petunia, dear, it's time for supper!"

The blonde walked into the dining room slowly. She glared at Lily and plucked down in her chair.

Mr. and Mrs. Evans brought out the food, and the family began eating. They were halfway through their meal when a large, tawny owl flew through the window and landed on Petunia's plate.

"Erg! Get it away from me!" She screeched, backing away from the table.

"Calm down, Tunia, it's just an owl! She's harmless, I swear!" Lily shouted. She picked up the huge bird and untied the letter it carried. "It's Sabrines'."

Once the owl had flown back through the window, Petunia turned to Lily.

"You-you freak!" She hissed, and ran upstairs. The rest of the family finished the meal in an awkward silence.

…

"Jessi, for the last time, there is NO WAY I'm going to tell you what I got you for Christmas!"

"Aw, come on James! Just one little hint?"

"No!"

"You're no fun."

"Nope."

The twins sat together in James' room. James flipped through his collection of Quidditch magazines, and Jessi watched a toy Quidditch game. The fake arena consisted of an oval container, about five feet in length, with tiny Quidditch players flying around on miniscule broomsticks. The detail was extraordinary. It even had stands, an announcer, and tiny screaming, cheering fans.

"You trying out for Quidditch next year?" Jessi asked.

"Of course!"

"What position?"

"Whatever's open."

"Think you'll make it?"

"Yup."

"Not getting egotistical, are we?"

"Hm?"

"So what are you getting me for Christmas?"

…

_Lily-_

_How's your break so far? Mine's pretty good, I'm in Denmark at the moment, visiting my grandparents. _

_-Sabrine_

…

Sabrine- 

_I've been at home all break so far. Petunia hates me._

_-Lily_

…

Lily- 

_I'm sorry._

_-Sabrine_

**A/N: **That's it! Now go review! Next chapter is Christmas! And I'll warn you now, it's gonna be very sad.


	17. Merry Freakin' Christmas

A/N: I meant to update a while ago, I'm sorry! I'm actually babysitting this week, so I'm not being very responsible right now….

…

"James, James, wake up! Wake UP you git, it's Christmas!"

"Eh?" James rolled over lazily and opened one eye.

"For the love of Merlin, Jess, it's four in the morning!" He groaned.

"Yeah, so?"

"If I get up, will you promise to never, EVER wake me up this early again?" James asked.

"O.K.! Now come on!" Jessi grabbed James' hand and yanked him off the bed.

"We get to go see **my** presents first!"

…

"I love it! Thanks mum!" Lily grinned and admired a brand new gold charm bracelet.

"I knew you would! I thought that we could give you a new charm each birthday and Christmas, and each one will have special meaning. This one, see, it's a little witch's hat, get it?"

"Of course. Thanks, mum, dad." Lily smiled up at her parents. "Oh, Petunia, I got you something, too."

Lily reached over and handed her sister a small package wrapped in shiny gold foil. Petunia glanced at it warily and unwrapped it.

"It's Honeydukes chocolate," Lily explained. "My friend Jessica had some from her parents a few weeks ago, and she let us try it. I thought you would like it, so I ordered some from a catalogue."

"Petunia, what do you say?" Mrs. Evans said sharply.

"Thanks."

"Well, that's the lot of them." Mr. Evans said cheerfully. "Sorry there's not any more, kids, it's just that, well, you know…"

"We're poor. You can say it, Daddy, we know." Lily grinned and hugged her father. "I love all my gifts, even if they're not the most expensive in the world."

"Did you send your friends anything?" Mrs. Evans asked.

"Yes, I did, actually. Small things, of course. I sent Sabrine a necklace, Jessi some muggle candy, and Danica a bunch of weird stuff for her hair. They sent me stuff, too! Sabrine sent me this really cool book of a bunch of different Charms, Danica sent me this really pretty stationary set, and Jessi sent me a purse filled with candy."

Mrs. Evans gasped as Lily held up the purse from Jessi. "That's beautiful, darling, but it looks very expensive…"

"Oh, Jessi's family is really rich." Lily explained. "Apparently one of the richest wizarding families in the world. She's one of the only nice rich kids though. She has a twin brother, James, he's o.k., I guess, just really immature. Him and his friend Sirius pull all these pranks a lot, like this one time, he took spiders, and he-you're not following any of this, are you?"

Mrs. Evans shook her head. "No, dear, I'm afraid I lost you a few moments ago.

All four Evans's laughed.

…

"Wow, thanks, Jess!" James grinned as he polished a brand new Comet 220. "I didn't know these had come out yet!"

"Just came out yesterday. I love this, though, where'd you find it?"

"Oh, that was in-"

"Oh, good, you two are up!" Mrs. Potter leaned against the doorway, still wearing her red dressing gown. "How do you like all your gifts?"

"We love them, mum!"

"Yeah, they're great!"

"Glad you liked them." She yawned widely. "Let's go down to breakfast!"

…

**(11 hours later)**

"Mum?"

"Lily, dear, what's the matter?"

Lily slid onto her mother's lap. "This isn't about what Petunia said at supper, is it?"

Lily bit her lip and nodded.

"Oh, Lily, dear, she didn't mean it. You're not a freak for being a witch, you're s_pecial. _There's nothing wrong with being different, Lily."

"But-"

"Lily, don't listen to her. You're not a freak, I promise you!"

Lily sighed and forced a smile. "Thanks, mum."

…

"I missed you two, you know."

Jessi smiled. "We missed you, too, mum." James nodded.

"Really, we did. Those house elves can't cook _near _as well as you and Blinky can."

Mrs. Potter laughed. "Good to know someone appreciates my cooking. Your father should be home soon, I'm sure he's very sorry he couldn't spend more time with you."

Jessi and James exchanged looks.

"That's o.k., mum-"

"I'm sure he was really busy with his conference and all-"

"Honestly, kids, why do you always act so fidgety when we talk about you're father?"

The three were silenced by the sound of the front door opening.

"Henry? Henry, is that you?" Mrs. Potter called out.

Henry Potter walked around the corner, a strange smirk on his face.

"Of course it's me, who'd ya think, the muggle Prime Minister?" He laughed loudly.

"Henry? Henry, dear, are you-drunk?"

"Ha! Of course not! I only had a few firewhiskeys down at the pub!" He bumped into a table. "Ow. Anyways-you."

James gulped. "Yeah, dad?"

"I talked to the minister today. You know what he said? He said-he said that you and that Black kid were getting into trouble at school. Is that true?"

James lowered his gaze to his plate. "We got a few detentions, but we didn't get into any real trouble."

"Well, no son of mine is disgracing the Potter name. It's time…" He pulled James out of his chair, "…you learn some discipline."

"Daddy, NO!" Jessi shrieked.

Henry thrust his knee into his son's stomach. James gasped and keeled over, choking.

"Henry, stop!"

He kicked James in the chest. James cried out as he kicked again, but this time in James' face.

"Henry, I said STOP!"

Henry turned and slapped his wife across the face.

She held her cheek and glared at her husband.

"Out." She hissed. "I want you out of my house now."

A/N: Sorry it's kind of rushed, I wanted to get this chapter out ASAP. Please review, tommorow's my 14th birthday, and I'll be at home stuck babysitting my sisters and a bratty girl from across the street…And reviews will make me happy!


	18. Divorce and Custody

A/N: Thanks for all the great reviews and 'happy birthday's'! You guys rock!

…

"All alone! For THREE whole weeks!"

"Sirius-"

"Don't 'Sirius' me! You left! You all went home with your happy little families and left me all alone!"

"Sirius-"

"And you all had a grand old Christmas, while I was stuck at school! Evil little gits."

"Sirius!"

"What?"

James sighed and fell back onto his bed. He mumbled something into his pillow.

"Eh?"

"My parents are getting a divorce."

Remus, Peter, and Sirius ran over to James' bed, bombarding him with questions.

"What happened?"

"Why?"

"Who're you and Jessi living with?"

James looked up at Remus.

"My mum, I hope. We're living with my aunt until the divorce is settled. My dad's living in an apartment and my mum moved in with some friends. I think my aunt is coming to live with us, so we don't have to move all our stuff."

"Oh." Sirius said. "So you still get the big house."

Him and Peter returned to their own beds and soon fell asleep. Remus shook his head at his friend's stupidity and looked at James concernedly.

"Are you o.k.?" he asked.

James nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." But as James drew the hangings around his bed, Remus glimpsed a dark purple bruise peeking over the collar of his shirt.

…

"Jessi, are you o.k.?" Lily asked.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. I'm actually kinda glad about the whole thing, my parents didn't agree very much.."

"What about James? Is James alright?" Danica asked.

"For the love of Merlin, Dani, will you stop obsessing about him for like two seconds?" Sabrine yelled.

The other three girls stared at her in shock.

"Sabrine, are you feeling-"

"I'm fine, and if you don't mind, I think I'll sleep in my **real** dorm tonight."

She stomped off, leaving behind three flabbergasted best friends.

"What's up with her?"

…

The next morning, Sabrine ate with the Gryffindors as usual.

"Are you alright?" Danica asked her.

Sabrine put down her fork.

"I'm fine. And I'm sorry about last night, too. It just gets on my nerves that you talk about him all the time. It's really annoying, Danica."

Danica's mouth opened in surprise.

"I'm really annoying?"

Sabrine looked at her. "Well duh!" They both laughed and resumed their breakfast as normal.

Suddenly, Lily gasped loudly.

Her three friends turned to face her.

"What's wrong, Lils?" Danica asked.

"Look!" She exclaimed, spreading her copy of the 'Daily Prophet' across the table. They all leaned over and read the article Lily pointed at.

Trouble Brewing at the Potter's By: Lynsea Skeeter 

_Henry and Wendy Potter (43 and 41) just yesterday announced their plan for a divorce, to be finalized in two weeks, on February 11th. When questioned as to why the couple is splitting, Wendy Potter declared, "We've been growing apart lately. I don't like how he treats my children and I don't like how he treats me. This is the only thing that can be done at the moment. I have no further comment." Henry Potter, however, has stated that he had no idea why his wife wanted a divorce, and that he wishes they could work out their differences. The couple has two children, James and Jessica, (aged eleven) who attend Hogwarts. Both Mr. and Mrs. Potter have attempted to claim custody of the children. However, until a final decision is worked out, the two will stay with their only other living relative, Susan Browning (33), who is Mrs. Potter's half-sister._

"So, you saw it too?"

Jessi looked up into her brother's face.

"I thought mum was going to get custody of us." Jessi said.

"Guess dad fought for it, too. Guess we'll be staying with Aunt Sue, then. Think dad will find a way to blame us for the divorce?" he added, in a whisper Jessi could barely hear.

"Probably." She whispered back.

…

**A/N: **Sorry it's kinda short, I'm still babysitting and I shouldn't leave the kids alone too long. Anyway, I was thinking, this story will be VERY long if I keep writing like 20 chapters each year. So I'll probably start skipping longer periods of time than I have been. Tell me if you think it's a good idea, or if you'd rather have a 140-chaptered story. I really don't care.


	19. PLEASE READ!

_**A/N: Alright, here's what I've decided. I'm not going to completely tear this fic down, but I won't really finish it, either. I'm rewriting some of the first chapters, and then skipping ahead to seventh year. So I'll still have these chapters up, but I won't have second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth year-at all. Does anybody agree with this, or should I just scrap the fic altogether?**_


	20. Parting Ways

A/N: Um, o.k., so I could SWEAR I wrote another chapter for this and published it…but I guess I never finished, and then we got a new computer and everything we had saved was gone forever. I'm sorry! Really truly completely 100 SORRY!! Don't kill me! At least I updated now, though, right?? Heh…heh…heh. Here you go…

**Meant To Be**

**Chapter 19**

"They're finally over! Praise the lord hallelujah!" Jessi knelt down and kissed the ground.

Sabrine, Lily, and Danica looked at her incredulously.

"Are you quite all right, Jessi?" Sabrine asked slowly.

"I'm great! Super. Tip-top, cheerio!" Jessi stood and skipped around in a circle. "Exams are **finally** over, my mum got custody of me and James, and mum said you could all come to our house for as long as you want over summer break!"

"Your mum got custody?" Lily asked, "That's great, I guess, but why are you so happy about not seeing your dad anymore?"

Jessi stopped mid-skip. "Um. I'd rather not talk about it, actually."

"Exams are over, over, over, YEAH! Over, over, over, YEAH!"

The four girls turned around. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were all headed towards them. James and Sirius were hopping around in a sort of tribal dance, chanting, very much like Jessi had been earlier. Jessi laughed and linked arms with the two of them, and they continued the chant.

"Exams are over, over, over, YEAH! Over, over, over, YEAH!"

"So what's up?" Remus asked.

"Nothing much, Jessi's just been telling us that their mum got custody." Lily replied.

"Yeah, James was really happy when he got his mum's letter last night," Remus said, glancing over at the strange tribal dance.

_"Over, over, over."_

"So are you guys going to the Potter's over summer?" Peter asked.

Danica nodded. "Jessi invited us this morning."

_"Over, over, over."_

"What about you, Sabrine?"

Sabrine nodded and looked down. A faint flush began to creep up her face.

_"Over, over, over."_

"Well, I gotta go. Today's the last day to return library books. See you around." Remus waved at the girls and walked off, Peter following close behind. When he was well out of sight, Danica turned to Sabrine.

"You like him!" she whisper-yelled.

_"Over, Over, Over."_

"I do not! I mean, yeah. NO! I don't…know," Sabrine blushed again.

**_"Over, Over, Over!"_**

****"You so do! Oh my gosh, Sabrine, this is so cool! You have your first crush! You two would look so cute together!" Lily squealed.

"Just don't tell him…please?"

**_"Over, Over, Ov_**-Don't tell who what?"

Jessi turned to look at her friends, her eyes wide. "Tell who what?"

"NOTHING!" Sabrine yelled quickly. James and Sirius stopped chanting to look at the girls.

"Nothing, we just, um, have to go do girl stuff!" Lily cried, dragging her three friends behind her.

"Girls are weird." Sirius stated. James nodded.

OoOoOoOoOoO

"You like REMUS?"

"Yes, Jessi, now please stop yelling!" Sabrine pleaded. "I don't want the whole castle to find out!"

"O.K., sorry. It's just…wow. YOU like REMUS."

"Alright, change of subject, please?" Sabrine said, burying her face in her pillow.

"Fine. So Jessi, are your brothers friends planning any cool pranks for tomorrow?"

OoOoOoOoOoO

"And I'd just like to take a moment to say goodbye to our Seventh Years. Hopefully you will all find your place in the world and make a difference."

The students clapped politely as Dumbledore finished his speech. It was the last day of school, finally, and everybody was waiting very impatiently for the announcement of who had one the House Cup.

"And judging from the looks on your faces, I'm guessing you're all getting highly impatient with me. So, here it is."

Every student in the Great Hall was silently waiting, crossing their fingers and staring at Dumbledore.

"In fourth place, with three hundred ninety-five points-Hufflepuff!"

Everybody clapped politely, and the Hufflepuff table looked depressed.

"In third place, with four hundred points-Ravenclaw!"

More polite clapping.

"In second place, with four hundred twenty-five points-Slytherin!"

Cheers from the Slytherin table. The Gryffindors turned to grin at one another.

"And in first place, with an astonishing four hundred and ninety-five points-Gryffindor!"

The entire Great Hall erupted into cheers, all the Gryffindors hugging each other and throwing their hats in the air. While still cheering, everybody looked around for signs of James Potter and Sirius Black. When they were nowhere to be found, people began searching for Peter and Remus. But they were gone, too. What was going on?

**_POP._**

Thousands of Gryffindor banners unfurled from the ceiling, tables, walls, and even some of the Professors hats. Confetti drifted down heavily from above, and fireworks exploded in red and gold. When all had settled down, one lone firework stood suspended in the air:

_Happy Summer!_

_From the Marauders:_

_James Potter_

_Sirius Black_

_Remus Lupin_

_Peter Pettigrew_

Jessi laughed and pointed to the entrance way. The four 'Marauders' stood by the door, high-fiving each other.

Professor McGonagall stood to tell them off, but Dumbledore shook his head, and she sat back down. As the four made their way to the Gryffindor table, everybody clapped and cheered for the four young boys.

OoOoOoOoO

"Promise you'll write?" Lily asked her friends.

"Totally!"

"Duh!"

"Every day!"

"Promise you'll visit?" Jessi asked.

Her three friends nodded violently.

"Of course we will!"

The four friends hugged one more time and took off to find their parents.

OoOoOoOoO

"You guys will come over this summer, right?" James asked his friends.

"Yup."

"M-hm."

"Maybe."

"Maybe?" James asked. "Why?"

"Well I doubt my mom will want me to, what with my condition and all…"

James waved it off. "Just come right after the full moon and leave right before!"

Remus grinned. "I guess I can talk her into that…"

**A/N: **Sorry it's kinda short, but I have to go somewhere in five minutes, and I REALLY wanted to update this. Please review, and read the author's note in the previous chapter. I'm now debating actually finishing this. Like Second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, AND seventh year. But I'm not sure. Reviews, please!


	21. Nightmare

A/N: So here's a weird chapter. I won't have time to update again till Sunday, so I'm trying to get something quick in, to explain more about the Potter family. Enjoy!

**Meant To Be: Part 20**

_Early on a Sunday morning in late November, a small nine-year-old boy slid carefully down the stairs of a huge house. He felt his way around in the dark to a bedroom._

_"Jackie?" he asked tentatively. "Jackie, are you here? I had a bad dream."_

_Nobody answered the little boy, and he slowly turned on the light. The bed was empty, the bookshelves cleared and dusty, one lone white sock lying in the middle of the floor. _

_That's right! The little boy thought, pushing his glasses further up on his nose. Jack left, last week. Where did Jack go? Was he coming back for Christmas? Why'd he leave?_

_A small cough interrupted the boy's thoughts. He turned. A young girl of the same age with equally dark hair and big eyes stood in the doorway, observing the scene._

_"Jackie left." She said simply._

_The boy nodded and walked over to the girl. He hugged her tightly, and she began to cry._

_"Jackie left! Jackie left us!" she cried, over and over._

_The children were broken up by the entrance of a large presence. They looked up, frightened, to a tall, wide-shouldered man, at least twice as tall as their heights combined._

_"Daddy…" the young girl said softly._

_The man had a maniacal look in his eye._

_"Jack left." He stated._

_The children nodded. "Jackie left."_

_The man began to tremor. "Jack left. Jack left. Jack left."_

_"Its o.k., daddy!" The boy exclaimed. "He'll be back."_

_The man grabbed the boy by the neck of his nightshirt._

_"Don't you understand?" he yelled, "Jack's NEVER coming back!"_

_"Yes he will!" the boy shouted, "He'll come back for Christmas! He wouldn't leave us, not-_

_The man threw the boy against the wall, hard._

_"Daddy!" the girl shrieked._

_The boy reached up to wipe a line of blood from his mouth, and the man advanced upon him again. He kicked him, hard in the stomach. The boy doubled up and gasped for air, and the man whispered,_

_"He's never coming back."_

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

_A young boy of ten sat in his bed, crying. He had a large bruise spreading across his forehead, and the cut on his right arm was throbbing painfully. He looked up as someone entered the room._

_"Sorry, sir." He said quietly._

_"You know why you were punished?" the man stated._

_"Because I dropped mommy's cake."_

_"Yes you did."_

_"I'm sorry."_

_"You can't fix this by being sorry, son! Sorry won't bring the cake back, will it?"_

_"It was just a cake, dad…"_

_A strange purple-gray color spread across the man's face. He pulled the boy out of bed and threw him to the ground in front of him._

_"Are you talking back to me, son?"_

_"No, I didn't-_

_He was cut off as a large, meaty fist connected with his jaw._

_"That'll teach you to stop talking back to your betters."_

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

_An eleven-year-old boy sat quietly at the breakfast table, stirring his oatmeal disdainfully. He had woken up late, and the house-elves had already cleared away all the breakfast things. So he was stuck with sticky gray oatmeal. He hadn't yet eaten a bite of it when his father walked in._

_"Why aren't you eating?" he demanded._

_"I don't care for oatmeal, sir," he answered._

_"Well that's not my problem is it? You should have been down on time."_

_"Sorry sir." The boy continued to stir the cold oatmeal, still not eating._

_"Eat your breakfast, son."_

_"I don't like oatmeal."_

_"Eat your breakfast now!"_

_"But-_

_The man grabbed the bowl of oatmeal and pressed the boy against the chair with his fist. He grabbed a spoonful of oatmeal and stuffed it into the boy's mouth. He grabbed another, and another, continuing to force the spoon into his son's mouth. The boy began to choke violently, and the man finally walked away, leaving the boy to cough up oatmeal and blood onto the kitchen floor._

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

_The boy was still eleven, and eating breakfast with his mother and sister. A door opened far away._

_The man walked around the corner, a strange smirk on his face._

"_Dear, are you-drunk?" the woman asked._

"_Ha! Of course not! I only had a few firewhiskeys down at the pub!" He bumped into a table. "Ow. Anyways-you."_

_The boy gulped. "Yeah, dad?"_

"_I talked to the minister today. You know what he said? He said-he said that you and that friend of yours were getting into trouble at school. Is that true?"_

_The boy lowered his gaze to his plate. "We got a few detentions, but we didn't get into any real trouble."_

"_Well, no son of mine is disgracing the family name. It's time…" He pulled the boy out of his chair, "…you learn some discipline."_

"_Daddy, NO!" the girl shrieked._

_The man thrust his knee into his son's stomach. The boy gasped and keeled over, choking._

"_Daddy, stop!"_

_He kicked the boy in the chest. The boy cried out as he kicked again, but this time in his face._

_"James!" the girl shrieked. "James! James! James!"_

"James, wake up! James! James!"

James Potter opened his eyes suddenly. His clothes were soaked through with sweat, and Jessi sat on the bed next to him, shaking him by the shoulders and crying.

"James, are you alright?"

James nodded and began sobbing.

"Jessi, it was awful! Dad, and, and Jack…"

Jessi began to cry too, holding her brother close and rocking back and forth.

"It's o.k., James, we'll be fine. "We're safe now."

Oh, how wrong they were…

A/N: Yay! Cliffy! Reviews please!


	22. Transformation

**A/N: Another strange chapter, to give you a view of poor ol' Remus. **

**Meant To Be**

It was nearly dark. Remus could see the sun setting now. He pulled five separate chains to lock the door of his metal shed, twisted the remaining locks firmly, and made sure the tiny window was tightly secured. Once he was sure there was no possible way to get in or out, Remus sat down on his bed (which was really a large pile of ripped and tattered blankets) and braced himself.

He could feel it coming on now. His body tensed, his arms and legs began to shudder, and his torso stung unbearably. Any minute now…any minute…

_There._

Remus began to tremble violently. The stinging grew to his whole body, and his eyes rolled back into his head. He could feel his mouth frothing up. He fell back onto the cold cement floor. He was sweating horribly now, he could feel it. He rolled around, screaming in pain. His body was being ripped in two…knives were being thrust into his back and chest…it felt as if he was being dunked into acid, or some kind of cruel potion was being poured over him. He was dying…dying…dying…and it ended.

A huge, panting, brown-red werewolf now stood where Remus John Lupin had lay only moments earlier. The wolf liked its gleaming teeth hungrily and howled. The growling shook the entire shed, making the earth surrounding the wolf's home tremble as if the world was cracking open and swallowing itself.

_Hungry._

The wolf turned in a circle, hunting for a way to get out of this prison, a way to get food. But it was futile. The entire shed was made out of some strange, thick metal. The door had dozens of locks, and there was no way for anything bigger than an infant to fit through that window.

Wait! The window was opening now, and something was dropped inside. The werewolf ran over to the tiny hole, but it was closed and a rock was placed in front of it hurriedly. The wolf howled again, and paced around the window. What had been thrown?

_Rabbit._

A small, furry rabbit had been thrown into the room. Was it moving?

_Alive._

It was! The rabbit was shaking furiously, staring at the large creature before it. It gave a small squeak, and took off, running in circles around the room. The werewolf took of after it, catching it quickly and batting it around like a toy. The wolf let out a-was that a laugh?-as he tossed the bunny around, back and forth, back and forth. It seemed as if he was _playing_ with it.

_Dead._

The rabbit was limp in his hands now. The werewolf growled sadly as he looked down on his bloody, mangled toy. He sighed, then, a loud, echoing sigh, filling the room with breath that stank of dead animal. He glanced down at the rabbit and fiercely took a large bite of it, the skin ripping of in his mouth.

_Good._

When the wolf had finished of his rabbit, he had nothing else to do but go to sleep. So he lay down on his blanket and closed his eyes. But the bloody blanket wasn't _big_ enough. He grabbed it and shook it fiercely. Shards of material and cotton stuffing were flung into the air, and the blanket was destroyed. The wolf sat down heavily and sighed again.

_Lonely._

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

When eleven-year-old Remus Lupin woke up the next morning, he felt sick to his stomach. What had his mum left him to eat last night? Whatever it was left his mouth filled with the taste of blood. He spit on the ground, and noticed a few shreds of fur. He walked shakily to the door, unbolted it, and entered his house.

**A/N: Sorry for the shortness, my mom's about to pull my hair out.**


	23. Blood Traitors

A/N: Another one…you need more insight into these people's lives, you know…Plus I have a 30-minute limit on weekdays, and I have pages of AP Biology homework tonight… Don't worry, there'll only be…one, two, maybe three more.

**Meant To Be: Blood Traitor**

**Sirius**

It was on an uncomfortably hot Sunday afternoon in mid-June that Sirius decided he loathed his family. As a young child growing up in the Black household, he always knew he was different. He just didn't understand why he should hate somebody for not being able to do magic, not like the rest of his family obviously did. All his life, Sirius had been exposed to the life of rich purebloods. That's the only reason why he was allowed to be friends with James and Jessi: they were from an old, rich family of all purebloods. Sirius hadn't yet told his parents about Remus and Peter. They would have told him he couldn't so much as look at them anymore; they simply weren't good enough. Nobody in his family was like him.

Except for Andromeda. Andy, he called her. Andromeda was four years older than him, a fifth-year Ravenclaw. She was like him. She was a rebel. Andy never got mad at him for asking why the should hate muggles and muggle-borns. Andy was normal.

Right as Sirius was wishing everybody in his family was more like Andromeda, she walked in.

"How's your summer so far, cousin?"

Sirius shrugged. "You know, I came home, Mum yelled at me for being sorted into Gryffindor, Dad yelled at me for being sorted into Gryffindor, they both yelled at me for getting twelve detentions in a month, Regulus walked in, Mum and Dad yelled at me for not being like him, and I was exiled to my bedroom for the rest of the summer. Y'know. The usual."

Andromeda laughed hoarsely. "Better than mine. You have Reg. I'm stuck with Bellatrix and Narcissa."

"Good point."

"Andromeda! Sirius! Get down here now!"

Andromeda sighed and stood up, motioning for her cousin to follow.

"What do they want now?" Sirius hissed. Andy shrugged.

"Beats me."

The two made their way down the stairs reluctantly, only to be met with the sight of both sets of parents, Bellatrix, Narcissa, and Regulus. The four parents looked furious, and the siblings looked malicious.

"You two are the brattiest children I have ever met." Cygnus, Andromeda's father glared at the pair. Orion, Sirius's dad, nodded violently. The mothers, Walburga and Druella stood immobile next to their husbands, a blank expression on both faces.

"Blood traitors, the both of you!" Orion hissed.

"What'd we do?!" Andromeda exclaimed.

"You, Andromeda Violetta Black, were sorted into Ravenclaw! Not ONE of your friends is pureblood, and that Ted boy you're 'seeing' is a mudblood!" Cygnus yelled.

"And you, Sirius Orion Black, you've been hanging around with that Pettigrew boy. Are you aware he is a half-blood? And Gryffindor, of all things! You know very well Slytherins and Gryffindors have always been enemy houses. Bellatrix even told me that you and Potter have pulled pranks on the Slytherins! How could you betray your family, Sirius?" Orion roared.

Sirius and Andromeda exchanged a look. What were they supposed to say? It was all true, after all. They turned to look at their parents and shrugged.

Cygnus threw up his hands and bellowed, "Just go away! Get away from us!"

Andromeda and Sirius ran back upstairs, finally collapsing onto the floor of Sirius's room.

"What exactly was the point of that?" Andromeda asked.

Sirius shrugged. "They need somebody to let their anger out on, right?"

Andromeda chuckled softly. "They'll probably disown us someday."

"The sooner the better!" Sirius said happily.

And so the two hid in Sirius room for the rest of the day, laughing at jokes they read aloud from the back of the Daily Prophet, avoiding their pureblood-loving family.

_James-_

_When can I take you_

_up on that offer of_

_coming over? My_

_family's awful._

_-Sirius_

**A/N: **Sorry for the shortness, I had to bribe my sister to give me ten minutes of her computer time. Now to my reviewers:

not a journalist-just me: Bows Glad you like it!

Opal Eyes33: Yes, Lily/James stories are cool, aren't they? I'm so pleased you like mine!

Wildfire2345: I feel sorry for poor Remus, too. He's not a monster like some ignorant people (cough Umbridge cough) think he is, he's just not the luckiest guy alive. You think I'm an awesome writer? Blushes

LandUnderWave: The award for most reviews goes to you! Yay! Thanks for reading (and reviewing) this story!


	24. Another Nightmare

A/N: You know, I've had 12293 hits on this story? Yeah, and 88 reviews. 44 people have this story on their alert list. So how come I'm getting an average of about four reviews a chapter? It's depressing. I need more reviews. They're like candy.

**Meant To Be**

"Couldn't stand your parents anymore, could you, Sirius?" Jessi smiled at the boy.

"What do you think?" Sirius grinned and leaned against the doorframe. "Can I come in?"

Jessi pretended to ponder this for a moment. "Hm…no, I don't think so."

A pounding on the stairs caused both children to turn. James appeared, looking slightly disheveled, his hair uncombed and sticking out even worse than usual. His shirt buttons were off, causing the right collar to turn up unevenly. He was only wearing one shoe, and his glasses were crooked on his nose. The sight caused both Sirius and Jessi to laugh hysterically.

"What?" James asked, oblivious. Jessi, still laughing, pointed down to his shoes, then to his shirt, and his glasses.

James looked down and flushed. He quickly re-buttoned his shirt, pulled on his other shoe, and straightened his glasses. He then walked over and pushed his twin out of the doorway, beckoning to Sirius to enter.

"Hey!" Jessi yelled. She pushed James, hard, and he fell back into a wall. He lunged at her, grabbing her knees and pulling her to the ground next to him. She grabbed the back of his hair and pulled up sharply. James's head was thrown back, and in retaliation, he bit his sister's hand.

"Ow!"

"Hey!"

"Stop it!"

"Jessi!"

"James!"

"Both of you, _cut it out_!"

The two immediately stopped wrestling and stood up. Mrs. Potter stood before them, a look of bemusement on her face.

"What's going on?"

"He pushed me!"

"She wouldn't-"

"I didn't-"

"But you-"

"Nuh-uh!"

Mrs. Potter sighed. "Hello, Sirius."

"Hello, Mrs. P." He closed the door and smirked at his friends.

"Jessi, dear, please do tidy up your room, your friends are coming today."

Sirius widened his eyes. "They are?"

James nodded and smirked. "Danica, Sabrine, and Lily."

The two shared identical, mischievous grins and ran upstairs.

Mrs. Potter gazed after them, looking faintly scared. "Jessica, dear, whatever is your brother planning?"

Jessi shrugged. "Who knows, mum. Who knows."

IIIIIII

"Jessi!"

"Sabrine!"

"Jessi!"

"Danica!"

"Jessi!"

"Lily!"

"Sirius!"

The four girls laughed. James hit Sirius over the head, and he pretended to be hurt. He clutched his head and walked around the room in mock-agony.

"It hurts! Oh, it hurts! Jessi, will you kiss it and make it better?"

Jessi smiled sweetly and leaned down. She punched Sirius in the shoulder.

"Ow! Sweet Merlin, that hurt! Gosh, I'm so abused…"

Jessi stopped laughing and glanced at James worriedly. He shook his head, clearly saying the 'abused' comment didn't bother him. Jessi could tell that it did, though. Why'd her father have to be like that? He had probably scarred James for life now…

"So, how's your summer been, Jess?"

Jessi shook her head and turned towards her friend, trying to forget about her father.

IIIIIII

_She could hear him. He was walking closer, closer. She could practically smell him, the combined stench of alcohol and sweat filling her nostrils. She could feel James trembling next to her. What would he do if he found them? They were well-hidden, huddled in the miniscule spot between the big sofa and the wall. But what if he did find them? What if-?_

_His footsteps stopped now, heavy and threatening. She could see the tips of his boots from the crack underneath the couch. A low, threatening growl erupted from his throat, and he threw the sofa back, revealing the two children crouched, waiting._

_He picked up the boy now, knocking the glasses of his face._

_"Stupid kid!" he yelled, punching the boy in the stomach and throwing him to the ground._

_"No!" The girl yelled. "Daddy, stop it! Please!"_

_The man turned to look at her, a menacing scowl plastered on his face._

_"Stop? Excuse me? Whatever should I stop doing?"_

_"Daddy, please-"_

_The man laughed and pulled at his wand, pointing it at the boy, but looking at the girl._

_"Crucio!"_

IIIIIII

Jessi woke up screaming.

She quickly stopped, glancing at the three forms of her sleeping friends, and began to tremble. Seconds later, James rushed into the room, and over to his sister.

"Jess, Jess, what is it?" He pleaded, stroking her hair.

"James, it was horrible!" Jessi whispered. "You, and dad, and you were-"

"Jess, calm down! It was just a dream. Just a horrible, bad, dream…"

IIIIIII

When Lily, Danica, and Sabrine woke up the next morning, Jessi wasn't in her room. They glanced at each other before getting up and walking across the hall to James's room. The door was open, and Sirius was tying his tennis shoe.

"What's up?" He asked tiredly.

"Have you seen Jessi?" Lily asked him.

Sirius nodded. "Yup. Last night, me and James were talking about something, and all of a sudden he stood up and ran out of the room. I heard a scream, and he came back a few minutes later with Jessi. She was crying about something, a nightmare she had had, I think, and she fell asleep in here. They're probably downstairs, now."

The four went downstairs. They saw James and Jessi in the kitchen, talking seriously about something. When the two saw their friends, they sat up and smiled.

"Hey guys, what's up?"

The other four simultaneously, silently decided not to mention the events that occurred last night. They didn't want to embarrass Jessi. They all sat down to breakfast, joking and laughing like nothing had happened.

**A/N: Short, I know, sorry. I'm just trying to finish this, because last night I had a dream that became what will eventually be the epilogue of this story. Let me tell you, I've never cried so much in my life…It's sad. **

**Reviews, please!!!**


	25. Fwa Fwat

A/N: For once, I have nothing in the least bit interesting to say…hm.

**Meant To Be**

_This was heaven_, Lily thought_. No Petunia, no school, just me, my friends, and Jessi's brother and his friends in a nice, cool, swimming po-_

**Splash!**

"James Potter, what the bloody hell was that for?" Jessi squealed angrily.

James shrugged innocently. "I was bored."

"Well, that doesn't mean you can attack my friends!"

"I did no such thing!"

"You splashed them!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

Minutes later, a full-out water fight had broken out between the seven children. (Peter's mum hadn't let him come; Remus had arrived yesterday, three days after the last full moon of the summer) It soon turned into a boys versus girls warfare, with James, Sirius, and Remus against Jessi, Sabrine, Danica, and Lily. The girls were clearly losing, as James and Sirius had picked up Jessi, their best fighter, and tossed her (gently!) into a nearby bush. Sirius then tackled Danica and James grabbed Lily, and they, too, were tossed into the bush. Remus and Sabrine glanced at each other, wide-eyed.

"Truce?" Remus said, sticking his hand out.

Sabrine smiled sweetly and pushed him underwater. When he came back up, sputtering manically, she giggled and said,

"Truce!"

Sabrine then pulled herself out of the pool, grabbed her giggling friends from near the bushes, and strutted back inside.

The three boys glared after them.

"Girls are weird." Sirius stated simply.

Beside him, James and Remus nodded.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Can you believe it's already the last day of summer holidays?"

Jessi groaned. "Don't remind me, Sirius!"

"Sorry."

There was a momentary pause in the conversation.

"I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry, Sirius."

"No, I'm really hungry. When's dinner?"

As if on cue, Mrs. Potter called, "Kids! Dinnertime!"

The seven children raced to the dinner table, eagerly awaiting Mrs. Potter's cooking.

"Yum, ravioli!" Sirius cried.

"And spaghetti!" James added.

"And salad, boys," Mrs. Potter said, raising her eyebrow at her son.

"Mum!"

"Mrs. P!"

"You need vegetables; you're growing fast at this age, boys."

Jessi, Lily, Danica, Sabrine, and Sirius looked at James and stifled a laugh.

"Wha?" he asked, his mouth full of food.

"Nothing."

James swallowed and glared at his sister. "What?"

"Nothing, James."

"WHAT?!"

"It's just that…well, you're not exactly growing fast, James. You're what, four foot?" _(A/N: Sorry, I'm not familiar with centimeters, meters, etc. So I'll be sticking with American measurements for now. Sorry.)_

James glared at Sirius. "And how tall are you, four foot two?"

"Five foot exactly, thank you very much."

"Still short," Danica muttered under her breath.

"And you are?" Sirius asked.

"Five two."

"Jessi?"

"Five foot one."

"Lily?"

"Five."

"Sabrine?"

"Four seven. Shut up, Danica."

"James?"

"Um." He stuffed a large bite of ravioli in his mouth. "Fwa fwat."

"What?"

"He said four eight," Sirius laughed.

"Boys start growing later than girls do. Now all of you, shut up and eat!"

"Yes ma'am." The kids chorused.

A/N: Sorry for the shortness, but I'm being kicked off the computer. Next chapter is the train to Hogwarts!


	26. The Origin of Snuffles

A/N: Ugh. Ughy-ugh-ugh. Enough said.

**26**

"Stupid bloody trunk!" Jessi groaned loudly and kicked the side of her trunk.

"Yes, Siri, kicking your belongings will solve all your problems!" Sirius grinned and levitated his own trunk onto the overhead storage compartment.

"How'd you do that?" Jessi asked, incredulously. "We've never learned to levitate anything bigger than a book!"

"Skill, young grasshopper, skill. Something you shall never have…"

Jessi swung around and hit Sirius sharply on the side of the head.

"Now get mine up there, too."

Sirius smirked, holding his throbbing head, and lifted his wand.

"As you wish."

And Jessi, still holding on to the side of her trunk, was levitated up to the storage compartment.

"Sirius!"

Sirius was saved from Jessi's coming lecture as James entered the compartment. He observed the scene for a moment, then turned to Sirius.

"For your information, that is **my** sister you attacked," he started, looking unnervingly threatening.

Jessi grinned as her brother approached Sirius. "Oh, you're in for it now!"

James glanced up at his sister, then back at Sirius. He grinned.

"Next time, cast the full-body-bind so she can't climb down. Honestly, Sirius!"

Jessi looked at her brother in shock.

"You're supposed to be on my side!" she cried, falling rather ungracefully to the ground. "You're my brother!"

"Aw, Jess, you know I love ya!"

"Aw, James, you know you're a prat," Jessi said, pushing him over.

"Look, Sabrine, Lily! Sibling love," Danica smiled down at the two Potters sweetly.

"Look how well behaved they are!" Lily added.

"Where's Remus?"

Lily and Danica groaned.

"Sabrine," Danica sighed exasperatedly, "you just killed the joke!"

James stood, dusting off his robes.

"Wasn't funny, anyways," he muttered.

"She's got a point, though," Lily said, looking around, "where **is** Remus?"

"Looking for Peter," James and Sirius responded simultaneously.

"Who's looking for me?" Peter walked in the compartment, looking just the same as he had the year before, if not a little pudgier.

"Remus," responded Jessi, "Didn't you see him?"

"No."

James sighed. "Do we have to send out a search party for our searcher?"

"No," Lily said, "Cause he's coming now."

Remus burst into the compartment, red-faced and looking exhausted.

"I've looked all over the bloody train, and I can't find anybody that's even bloody seen him, not to mention I was nearly attacked by Snape and Malfoy on my…Peter?"

Peter sheepishly waved at Remus. "Long time no see, eh?"

Remus glared at him. "I…you…but…ERG!"

He flopped down on the velvet seats and crossed his arms.

"Git."

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"We'll probably be there soon," Remus groaned groggily, glancing at his wristwatch. He looked around. The rest of his friends were still sleeping; obviously he was the only one who had charmed his watch to vibrate lightly ten minutes before the train was due to reach Hogwarts. He slid his school robes on over his jeans and t-shirt.

"I said," Remus declared, raising his voice, "We'll be arriving soon!"

No response.

"Merlin," Remus sighed. He grabbed his wand from his coat pocket and waved it fiercely. A sparkle of golden light erupted from the end and enveloped his friends. They immediately started twitching uncomfortably.

"No, Jessi, stop it!" James groaned.

"James, cut it out!" Jessi replied.

"Danica!" Sabrine shrieked, "That _tickles_!"

"Stop it, Sabrine!"

"Petunia!"

"Mum!"

_**"Snuffles, cut that out now!"**_

****Remus waved his wand again, and the tickling-charm was deactivated. His friends woke up, all with varying looks of annoyance written on their faces. He chuckled at their expressions before turning to Sirius.

"Hey, mate, who's Snuffles?"

Sirius turned crimson. "Nobody."

James laughed silently, and Remus turned to him next. "Well, who _is_ Snuffles?"

"His old teddy bear," James answered, trying to hold back laughs.

Lily grinned. "You named your teddy bear Snuffles?"

"I was three!"

"Snuffles?"

"Three!"

"Uh, guys?" Remus called, hesitantly.

"What?"

"We're here."

The rest of the kids scrambled into their uniforms hurriedly.

"Hurry up, guys, we can't miss the feast!" Sirius called, shoving his friends aside to get to the door.

"Whatever you say," James grinned, "Snuffles."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

**A/N: **So….I'm extremely disappointed with this chapter. Really.


	27. So so so sorry

Ok. So I know I haven't updated anything since spring of last year. And I'm very very very very (very very very) sorry!!! I wasn't happy with anything on this account, so I just ignored it.

THIS DOES NOT MEAN I'M DISCONTINUING THIS STORY!

On my new account, "Amaranth O'Riley", I'll be continuing several fics. (Namely, Meant To Be, and Things I'll Never Say. I'll also be re-posting my various oneshots.)

Within a week, I'll be deleting this account. Once again, I'm sorry for the lack of news. However, if you were a fan of any of my stories, check out my new account

Dani


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